Millionaire art-décor funder Stanley Marsh III passed away on June 17th, 2013. Best known for his funding of Cadillac Ranch outside Amarillo, Texas, Marsh left a legacy behind him. Back in the 70s, Marsh worked together with art coalition Ant Farm and created the famous Cadillac Ranch.

The Cadillac Ranch, built in 1974, is comprised of 1949 to 1963 Cadillacs showing the evolution and life-cycle of the Cadillac tail fin. Each partial running or junk car was buried nose-down at an angle that corresponds with the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt.

Kelly Utsinger, a spokesperson for Marsh, states nothing will change at the Cadillac Ranch after Marsh’s passing. The cars of Cadillac Ranch have undergone many changes over the years. The cars were relocated in the late 90s to avoid city expansion. Housed on private property, visitors were welcomed and more famously, graffiti artists were welcomed. One, the cars were repainted in all pink in honor of Marsh’s wife, Wendy’s birthday and again in all flat black out of respect for Ant Farm artist Doug Michels. The repainting gives a great base coat for a new series of graffiti artist masterpieces.“Restored” and used in several commercials, every clean slate lasts no more than 24 hours before the chaotic and masterful graffiti returns on top.

Stanley Marsh III leaves behind a wife of 40 years, five children, and more than 10 grandchildren. It is said that Marsh preferred the cars in “their natural state”, meaning the multi-colored chaotic mess they’re generally in. “All that graffiti and vandalism gave them a real patina, like those Chinese vases that increase in value with each crack,” Marsh told a Texas magazine in 1990. “It shows people love their monuments.”