Simpson says he doesn't consider himself an artist.
"But everybody says I am," he said. "I'm just an old country boy."
To the people restoring the whirligigs, Simpson is both artist and engineer.
"Now he may not have been an educated engineer, but these are engineering feats, I can tell you that," Price said.
When Currie looks at the whirligigs, he mainly sees patience.
"The one that looks like a Christmas tree, there's 2,000 reflectors on there," Currie said. "And he had to cut each one of those reflectors out by hand, snip them, drill two holes in them, bend them over and tied them all with copper wire — 2,000 times."
Simpson doesn't disagree with Currie's assessment necessarily.
"It sure won't easy," he said. "People thought I was crazy. And I am to a certain extent."
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Online:
http://www.wilsonnc.org/departments/downtowndevelopment/whirligigpark/
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Martha Waggoner can be reached at http://twitter.com/mjwaggonernc
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Associated Press writer Allen Breed contributed to this story.
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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