“Vanishing Wheels” is a photobook by Steve Van Vlaenderen. Proceeds from the sale of the book will be donated to Parkinson Canada to fund research to find a cure for Parkinson’s Disease, with which the photographer and author lives. The book is dedicated to all those living with Parkinson’s Disease and their care partners.  

Behind every case of Parkinson’s there’s a human story. Steve Van Vlaenderen’s story started a new chapter in 2011 when he first received his Parkinson’s diagnosis at age 61. 

Sailing was always a passion of Steve’s and in 2010 he bought a 31-foot sailboat named Cloud. That summer, he and his partner Darlene Hildebrand started sailing Lake Winnipeg. Then came his 2011 diagnosis. Despite his doctors saying he should give up sailing, Steve and Darlene continued sailing Lake Winnipeg for the next 7 years. In 2018 they created a fundraiser they named “Sail on with Parkinson’s.” During the summers of 2018 and 2019, Steve and Darlene sailed over 3000 kilometers across four of the five Great Lakes, raising awareness and over $15,000 for Parkinson Canada.    

From the time of his diagnosis, Steve has always used exercise as his “treatment of choice.” Going to the gym so often, he caught the attention of a personal trainer who encouraged him to enter the Manitoba Amateur Body Building Association championship in Winnipeg. In 2015 he competed and won 2nd place in the over 50 Masters category, as well as a special award for “most inspiring” athlete. 

Steve Van Vlaenderen’s latest project is a photobook titled “Vanishing Wheels.”  

In the summer of 2021, combining his love of cars and photography, Steve and Darlene  

travelled over 16,000 kilometers across Western Canada in their motorhome finding and photographing old cars they found in fields, barns and along back roads. Vanishing Wheels is Steve’s photographic homage to these vehicles he found sitting in what may be their final resting places. He captures these vestiges – these vanishing wheels – and drags them from the dust to showcase them as a testament to our past and our progression, our humanity and ourselves. 

Vanishing Wheels isn’t just a book about cars, it is a book about stories. Each of the cars that Steve has lovingly photographed has a story of its own, just as each of us has a story. Inside their rusting bodies rests memories of people who lived, laughed and loved. These cars serve to remind us that everything and everyone has a story worth telling, even after they vanish. 

A copy of Vanishing Wheels makes a wonderful Father’s Day gift to celebrate the change, renewal and hope present in the stories of our lives. Proceeds from the sale of the book will be donated to Parkinson Canada to fund research to find a cure. 

Check out some samples of the amazing photographs you’ll find in the book. 

Vanishing Wheels is available for purchase online at the Friesen Press Bookstore.  

It is also available at McNally Robinson Booksellers in Winnipeg and Saskatoon.  

You can contact Steve directly at info@vanishingwheels.com