At the Retromobile in Paris recently, we saw the unique and artistic work by Amaury Dubois for the first time. His photographic modifications of cars are dynamic and intriguing! Of course, CarArtSpot wanted to know more.

Amaury Dubois - Artist & Photographer

Was your recent exposition at Retromobile in Paris successful for you Amaury?

It was a really good introduction and a surprising success for my new work.  There was a lot more interest than I had expected and I think I was successful in bringing my vision of photography from a different aspect, over to the public.

La Ferrari by Amaury Dubois

How long have you been doing cars?

I have been an artist for 14 years. My first work was with paintings but I studied photography in Belgium. I did photography at the weekends but my real work was paintings. It took about eight years before I figured out my own style in photography and I thought it was time to show my work.

You have been successful with both photography and your paintings.

In the past I have been more successful with my paintings but the last years there has been a lot of interest in my photographic work. I am self-taught and the difference you see in my photographical work comes from my painting style. I take photos in the same way as I paint.

So you use the same technique and principle for both?

Yes. I plan my photo’s in the same way as I would plan a painting. I look for the eye-line and at the anatomy of the objects in the photo.

Ferrari 250 GTE by Amaury Dubois

Looking at your Ferrari 250GTE which also provides a view inside the car, kind of showing all the elements. Is that what you mean by the anatomy?

No, my style is like a guide for your eyes.  It’s a way of looking at it which draws out your own idea of what you think about it. It is more about someone’s’ own dream or vision of a car, instead of just a photo of the car.

So what is your dream of the car? Is it the feeling of the powerful engine and sitting inside and driving this wonderful car?

Yes.  It’s not a static photo. It’s about the speed of the car.

You keep each element in place but also very detailed. You don’t blur it. It is in focus.

I keep all the elements and the line of the car and at first glance, you only see a car. But when you look at the photo more carefully, your brain starts working and you see that there is something different with the photo. You see the front, the back, the engine and all the parts of the car but what is this car? It makes someone think.

Aston DBS 2 by Amaury Dubois

Interior Design by Amaury Dubois

Do you start with a sketch before you start working with the photo?

Yes and I start doing the photos based on my sketch. So I know exactly which photos I need to take, it’s like a shopping list.

Do all the different images come from your database?

No. I have to find car collectors. Sometimes I phone them and other times it goes via word and mouth but the car collectors want to first see my work and meet with me in person before taking me to their collection. Some collectors have very expensive cars stored in very secretive places. It’s very interesting. They like the style of my work and this is why they want to work with me. It’s not just a usual photo of a car. It’s a very different style.

How do you produce your graphical work featured on your new website? Do you use real paints or keep it digital?

I start with a real painting, then take a photo of that painting and then I work with it on the computer.

Painting by Amaury Dubois

Looking at your gallery, I see most of your work has a black background and not yet all these graphical designs. Where are you going with this?

It is still in the experimental stage at the moment. I am not really sure. Maybe it will re-appear in a few years. For the moment, I prefer a black background.  But I always try something different and this is part of my research.

The audience only gets to see the tip of the Iceberg

Before I go to take the photos of the car, I make lots of sketches in preparation of how I want to photograph the car and from which angles. I am a painter and so I work like a painter. I am not like other photographers. It’s more my brain and spirit that do the photo’s which lead to my creations.

I think that is why you are reaching so many new people. Your work goes much further and deeper than other digital photographers.

Like an architect, I need a map and plan.

Corvette C1 by Amaury Dubois

Porsche 918 Spyder by Amaury Dubois

What is your dream for the coming years?

When I see a new car, there’s a new dream. I am going to Singapore soon for an exposition of my paintings.

As an artist you are very diverse, you do paintings, photos but there are also some sculptures

Yes, but for the moment it is only a stage. I am working on it but it’s not ready.

So you have a lot of ideas which still need to be created.

Yes, my brain is full of ideas.

Interior Design by Amaury Dubois

To see more of Amaury Dubois’s work, please visit his website: http://www.amaury-dubois.com/fr/

For his automotive art he recently launched a new website at http://www.art-photo-car.com/en/

The post Amaury Dubois Gives Cars A New Dimension appeared first on CarArtSpot.

Porsche was going to use a Turbocharger and bring it into the racing world. The first person that came up with the Turbo was Alfred Büchi and although the invention was made in 1905, it took many years before it was used in cars. 

Porsche Turbo by Randy Leffingwell

Porsche used this technique for the 917 and we are all familiar with the impressive results. Of course the next step was to use the turbo technique for the 911. As it has always been the philosophy of Porsche to connect their racing technology to street cars.  A first attempt in 1969 failed because there just wasn’t enough space to house the turbo charger.  Many engineers would have given up but for the team at Porsche, this was a challenge.

Porsche 928

Keeping these fast cars on the road by providing enough downforce became the task of the aerodynamics designers. But it wasn’t only the downforce they had to work on as it had the air-cooling, and air inlet became critical. Hundreds of hours of testing different configurations in the windtunnel helped to get the design perfect. The result was the impressive Turbo’s rear wing.

50 years later this book documents the history of the Porsche design describing all the challenges and solutions which the Porsche teams had to face. And the wonderful results covering all the racing cars and the turbo charged street cars. 

Porsche Turbo by Randy Leffingwell

Randy Leffingwell, author of this book, combines his skills as an entertaining writer with his passion for the automotive history. Since 1989 he has been writing books and to date more than 50 books by his hand have been published.  For this book he travelled through Germany to interview retired Porsche designers,  spent time in the Porsche archives and combined it with the memories and stories of famous drivers like Dereck Bell and Jacky Ickx. The result is a remarkable book which is a 'must have' for any Porsche owner, as it provides an even deeper appreciation for their beloved Porsche. 

Porsche 917

Porsche Turbo by Randy Leffingwell

Porsche Turbo by Randy Leffingwell

This book was originally published in 2015 by Quarto Publishing and the German translation is published Delius Klasing both versions are available here.

(this review was done on the German version) 

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CarArtSpot recently visited the Retromobile in Paris. Amongst the automotive artists exhibiting their work, was Unique & Limited which stood out for their large photo print of a Bugatti pit stop taken from above. An intriguing photo, since photos from that angle are only taken nowadays at F1 races and were not technically possible 50 years ago in the Bugatti era.

Bugatti T35 by Unique & Limited

Unique & Limited work is very different from other automotive artists at Retromobile. How was your work received?

It was a mix. Some people really liked it and the fact that it is something new on the market, which always helps revive the art industry. But some people struggle with which category to place it in.

Digital art in itself has been under some dispute by some groups such as AFAS. Is this something you encounter?

Well we actually tried to contact AFAS to become a member but they replied to say that they are kind of old fashioned and only really want to have artists in the same category. I think we will get there oneday but it may take some time.

Is Unique & Limited the first in the type of art which you are creating?

Yes, so far we have only come across two or three artists who do something similar. Digital art is quite broad and there are lots of rendered images which are displayed but none like ours.

What is the mission of Unique & Limited?

Basically we want to travel back in time and give history a way of looking at it in a way it deserves to be remembered. Usually historical moments (especially from the 30’s) are all black and white and quite grainy. The stories behind them are just as interesting as the races of today and we want to capture those moments and give them the quality and respect they deserve.

Silver Arrows by Unique & Limited

But why is that important? There are lots books with grainy photo’s which have some charm already?

Of course but a car like, say the Ferrari 250 GTO is one of the most expensive cars these days and many people value this kind of car and its’ history. There are only 39 of them, so they are limited, special and very beautiful in their own way. We want to make sure they get the attention they already have but improve it and make it as beautiful as it can be.

Ferrari 250 GTO Collection by Unique & Limited

Do you consider those cars to be art in itself?

Yes. The thing is the cars themselves require the main work. We build them exactly the way they were with all their dents and dirt and scratches. You basically cannot see them in that kind of condition anymore today because all the cars have been restored and polished to perfection, shiny and almost brand new looking, even though they are not. I always like to compare them to people because we try to fake our scars and marks even though there is no way you can look like 20 if you are 50. It doesn’t work that way. The great thing about this technology is that you dan basically do anything with it. Especially looking at these historical moments from a different perspective. That’s also what we try to do. Every image you see is sort of captured in a way that was technically not possible back then. People see our images and look at them for about ten minutes and can’t work out why they look like a photograph when it is physically not possible to be a photograph.

Like the Bugatti T35 which is my favourite.

Yes and that’s a great example because although we know that we have this view today in the Formula 1 races when they stop at the pit stops, back then it wasn’t possible. It’s the same for our work on the Silver Arrows where you are basically standing on the road and you have the cars coming at you. If you were the photographer, it would have been your last picture. It’s that kind of look that makes you feel like you are drawn into the scene because you become a part of it.

Burn and Crash by Unique & Limited

Unique & Limited tells a full story with just one photo and you do a perfect job in your marketing activities. I was surprised to see that you are creating a whole storyboard for your art.

Yes. It’s necessary and you can actually compare it to a movie production because you have to have a certain concept before you can actually start the work, due to the scale we work from. It’s a lot of work. We have to get all the details right. Everything of the car needs to be modelled in 3D and that takes a lot of work. For example the Bugatti which was modelled from the top; we had to make sure that everything was perfect from the top but if you were to rotate the camera and maybe look from the underneath, the car wouldn’t look the same. This is because we know you wouldn’t see it from that angle and so didn’t spend much time on modelling it. This is why you need to have a concept first, so that you know exactly which parts of the car need to be modelled. And it’s the same for the photoshoots. You have to know where the car is and what the people are going to be doing in order to actually do the photoshoot. We use Hollywood backgrounds aswell.  We worked for Lucas Film. So we know what the standards are there and it’s pretty much the same production work. You have to have everything set up and know how many people you need to hire and give them instructions as to what they need to do. You need to guide them.

So it is actually like doing a movie shoot because everything has to match; the fashion, the clothing, the tools etc.

Yes and we are actually quite fortunate to have good connections to the ‘The Hollywood of the East’, a big movie studio which has this huge department of period costumes and props that we can rent. 

A Dampened Victory by Unique & Limited

How do you pick the topics?

It depends. We always try to have some kind of theme such as upcoming anniversaries. Last year we did the Battle of Britain. Some sort of event which we can contribute something to. People approach us and ask if we are going to do a theme. We have a list of cars which are the most outstanding ones within the classic car industry and a long list of things we can and want to do but it’s always a matter of time and funding.

You are quite unique if you compare yourselves to other artists at Retromobile.

Yes and no. We have to support ourselves because we are still in our start up phase. We only just started working officially as Unique & Limited last year. So compared to other artists, we do the same but the difference is that we are a group of 5 or 6 people.

You picture historical events which need to be as accurate as possible but with your own twist to it.

Exactly. Authenticity and accuracy is key to every image. So we do spend a lot of time making sure we have all the correct details, enough reference images for the car and details for the story and background. It takes a lot of time and work before we can actually start modelling the car. Around a 1000 working hours just to get the modelling done. Other artists maybe work solo painting one image. So there is quite a difference.

Defeat But Not Despair by Unique & Limited

Does it help you to challenge each other? What kind of synergy do you have for each project?

The great thing is that everyone in our team has their own specialty. We all bring in something that each of us is really good at. It all comes together and we couldn’t do our work without each other.

What is the definition of art in the view of Unique & Limited?

Well I don’t think that art can be defined. There are so many different types of art and I don’t think you can really put a label on it. We struggle with that because so many people call our work photography, which it is not. Then they call it a painting, which it is not. There is no label for it. We always say it is a mix of photography and computer generated imagery or 3D artwork.

I try to define artwork by the emotion and feeling it conveys to the viewer. Your image of the Bugatti and the setting definitely does that.

Thank you. That’s the great thing about this technology, you can use it for everything.  Although we don’t just want to make car art, cars are a passion and there is a lot of passion behind our work. We don’t just do it to earn money. There is a lot of work involved and you have to enjoy it. We do and we also have a very broad vision.

Have you considered taking a Bugatti or a Ferrari and creating something of a more fantasy setting?

We have been approached about this and people would love to see the more newer cars in such a setting or in a nice environment. We think there is no point in doing this because you can actually take the car and put it in a nice environment and take a photo of it. We wouldn’t say no to a more fantasy setting but it should be a project which someone wants to do and where we have support.  There are people who know everything about cars and drivers and can tell us very interesting stories.  I’ve had so many customers come up during exhibitions and look at our work and tell us really interesting stories about the cars and its’ history.

Let It Rain by Unique & Limited

What is the dream of Unique & Limited.

One of our specialities is creating unique moments. Specific moments which happened back in history when no-one really knows what happened, or there are not many images to show the facts. We want to use our technology to change this and show what happened. It could be anything. Maybe it’s the starting of a big company moment or a beloved family member who did something heroic back in the days and they want to capture that moment in an art way. Kings and Queens have always had paintings of themselves. It’s even possible to recreate faces and use the technology to put it into a scene. There are great possibilities.

While you are capturing one specific moment, have you ever considered making short movies?

We do have ideas that we are playing around with but it’s different kind of work. Right now it’s only an idea which may materialize in the future. We don’t rule anything out.

So there are no limits to Unique & Limited?

Exactly. We were actually thinking at some point to change our name to Unique Unlimited. Our ideas are unlimited but the work we do is limited to limited editions.

To see more work by Unique & Limited, please visit their website: http://www.unique-limited.com/services/

The post Unique & Limited - Digital Automotive Art appeared first on CarArtSpot.

Benoit de Clercq

Today cars are convenient consumer goods to get us from A to B, mainly designed by marketing offices and rapidly becoming banned from large cities for pollution objects. As a young boy, born in the fifties, cars were a constant stirring of admiration symbolizing freedom, adventure, speed, pleasure, oil smells and beautiful body lines.

I fell in love with automobiles in my fourth year when I received a small French racing blue Talbot-Lago Grand Prix toy model for a Christmas present and when my father drove me in his new and futuristic DS Citroen. I knew then that cars would be one of my life’s passions.

Coupé noir by Benoit de Clercq

Although my parents offered me the best studies to become a diplomat or such other important person, I chose to become a mechanic. After my studies, I soon opened a motorcyle workshop in an old barn in the country. I tuned motorcyles for racing and reached an international level, building bikes for races such as the 24 hour Bol d’Or race in Le Mans. My racing modifications became more and more technical and drove me to learn the foundry practice, to be able to produce my own engine crankcases.

Oneday, I brought my foundry pattern of a technical item to an Italian industrial foundry. It was sculptured in wood as was then the practice. The foundry owner told me “with the care and attention you pay to detail and with such a finish, you should make art sculptures instead of mechanical parts”. I took his advice and to this day, my creations are a mix of art and technology. Although I didn’t study art, I have spent most of my life in Paris surrounded by wonderful monuments and museums and my background also helped mould my passion. My grandmother, who admired Pablo Picasso, helped me to open up my mind to modern art and my mechanic teacher at school had given me the basic knowledge to work on metals, using files and proper tools and many handcraft secrets.

My experience has been built upon many years of mutiple trials, success and errors, meeting other artists and foundry men, my curiosity and observations of museums and exhibitions such as Brancusi’s work in Centre Pompidou and reading many books.

DS green by Benoit de Clercq

I in no way wanted to stay confined in one box. Only to be a sculptor, an artist or a mechanic. I admire the 15^th and 16^th century when a man such as Leonardo da Vinci could be an engineer AND a painter!

After different occupations in motorcycles, planes and cars, I became a manager of Carrosserie Lecoq in the 80’s. It was then a famous coachwork company, founded in the 60’s and the first in France to be involved in very high level classic car restorations. There I had the fortune to work on the most fabulous cars of automobile history. Our customers were the most important collectors and museums in Europe and we had the opportunity to rebuild cars such as one of the three Bugatti Atlantic and the invaluable Bugatti Royale Esders Roadster. True sculptures! At that time, I also realized one of my dreams; building my own sportscar. A narrow bridge has always existed in my studio between creating sophisticated machines, real cars, different scale models and pure sculpture.

BRG roadster by Benoit de Clercq

My first sculptures were bought by private collectors. I was displaying them at classical motor shows and events, then permanently in art galleries in Paris, such as Galerie Vitesse and Galerie Marina de Bourbon on the Champs Elysees. For years my work has been represented in many car publications and national newspapers and magazines. Major companies and international organizations began to order my sculptures and trophies and I was very proud to make them for the FIA (Federation International Automobile) World Championships and Formula One Grand Prix. Watching Michael Schumacher brandish my work with joy at the end of his races filled me with pride and pleasure. Equally so for my more modest trophies for historical races and rallies which are always connected to happy moments. Giving happiness is the most pleasant reward for an artist.

During the years, some of my pieces have appeared in auction sales in prestigious places such as Christie’s in London, Artcurial in Paris, the Ferraris Museum in Maranello and the British National Motor Museum in Beaulieu. The arrival of internet, opened horizons worldwide and allowed me to offer my work and share my passion and emotions with collectors ordering from the USA, Australia, Russia, Asia, New Zealand and many other countries.

I like to present my studio as a ‘Dream Factory’. Some people are able to resolve very complicated mathematical equations, while others are very efficient businessmen or have talents which I do not possess. Differences and sharing give wealth to humanity. With my hands and my experience, I have the luck to help people realize their dreams. I am open to many projects and my curiosity and passion extend to automotives and the transportation world but also to other fields such as architecture and furniture. Whichever the field, I work with the same style, streamlined lines and a mix of artistic and mechanic past infuences which have driven me. It is of course, extremely interesting to create a real car from start to finish but pure sculpture has a special place in my activities. When you study and build a car, you have to adhere to many regulations which disturbs your creative freedom. With a pure sculpture, you are totally free.

P38 Aero by Benoit de Clercq

Some of my car sculptures are inspired by my own dreams. I call them simply ‘car studies’ or ‘mobile sculptures’ and they remain in that stage until I eventually find the opportunity to build them in full size. I would really love to drive my latest sculpture (the P38 Aero) in daily traffic. I just imagine the car; something of a plane with its’ narrow wheels and polished raw aluminium body with no plastics, as few electronics as possible, not by nostalgia but to try to give it a soul. If you compare a basic electronic watch costing around 30 or 40 euro to a mechanical luxury piece such as a Jaeger-Lecoultre costing a thousand times more, you will find that both give the exact time but the mechanical one is a wonderful craftsmanship masterpiecce, reflecting passion and human nature. Its’ mechanism may remind you of planets orbiting in the solar system. It has a real life which seems to go on forever.

In my studio, I look at my sculptures and dream and take pleasure in thinking about all the collectors worldwide who are sharing my dream.

Coupé noir by Benoit de Clercq

Black coupe by Benoit de Clercq

Other sculptures, such as my recent work on the XK Jaguar from the fifties, pay tribute to past masterpieces. My aim is to ‘distill’ the rough model and keep only the pure essence of the car and reflect the very first sketch done by the original designer on a simple sheet of paper. To do this, I try to become absorbed in the atmosphere of that period. Like an actor playing in a period movie. Reading or watching movies help, as does listening to the right music. Jazz, blues and rock were perfect to work on these Jaguar sculptures. I use only the traditional sculpture techniques. To obtain a bronze, aluminium or even modern resin sculpture, I need first to create a shape from wood, plaster, clay or any soft material. I obtain this first model, called ‘master’ by adding or removing matter. I may also work the same way as old wooden boat hulls are made; doing a shape with frame and rib bands covered by a thin skin and then shaping for hours before doing a mould. By using these old techniques which Romans and Greeks used thousands of years ago, you really feel the matter under your fingers and can work and refine curves until you reach your dreams. The result always has something very human, maybe by its’ imperfections which you never find in a ‘too perfect’ computerized creation.

Make Light Not War by Benoit de Clercq

By circumstance, some sculptures inspired from the automotive or aeroplane world may be serious. Such as ‘Make Light, Not War’; my contribution to remind us of the essential role of art. That is ‘enlightenment wins over obscurantism’. A concept art piece made from a missile, metamorphosed in a lamp. Serious for sure but colourful and optimistic.

To see more of Benoit de Clercq's work, please visit his website.

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Leica and Zagato, two brands with a long history combined in one book.

Zagato Leica USA Collectibles by Winston Goodfellow

One of the roles of art is to beautify our lives. Design has a similar role and we don’t always have to own the objects to enjoy their beauty. When going through this book, I began wondering what it was all about. What does a famous brand in lenses have to do with Zagato? But then it dawned on me that both brands have a long heritage in high quality and exclusive design. In the current trend of exclusive brands working together to create something unique, sharing each others strengths, this cooperation resulted in a pair of binoculars. This book is on one hand documenting the joint efforts designing these binoculars and on the other, a celebration of beauty.

It shows 33 Zagato USA collectibles in beautiful photos and quotes only. No historical details of the car, or its technical specifications. Just the plain beauty of the car seen through the lenses of Leica. This book demonstrates that you don’t always need words to tell a story.

Zagato Leica USA Collectibles by Winston Goodfellow

One quote in the book by Ansel Adams kind of summarizes it all;

“You don’t make a photograph just with a camera. You bring to the act of photography all the pictures you have seen, the books you have read, the music you have heard, the people you have loved.”

So what does this book give you?

The first chapter shows the design process of a unique collaboration between Leica and Zagato through the design of the Ultravid 8x32 “Edition Zagato” binoculars. A unique limited edition.

ZAGATO LEICA USA Collectibles

ZAGATO LEICA USA Collectibles

What follows are 130 pages of beautiful photographed cars. 3 Zagato’s from collections in the USA and photographed in their current habitat. The cars vary from the Fiat 8V Zagato Elaborata 1954, to an Alfa Romeo 8C 2300 Spider Aerodinamica from 1934 and a stunning Lamborghini Raptor (1996).

For those interested in the details of each car, the book ends with a short description of each.

ZAGATO LEICA USA Collectibles

This book is published at Delius Klasing and available here. 

ISBN: 978-3-667-10423-6

The post Zagato Leica USA Collectibles appeared first on CarArtSpot.

Do you see yourself as a storyteller of art Alan?

Yes. I’m not interested in portraits of cars. I really like introducing people into my paintings rather than just mechanical objects. I like to do paintings which have some sort of a story and situation in them showing peoples facial expressions.

Automotive Artist Alan Fearnley

I noticed that there are a lot people being active in your paintings. Do you have people posing for you?

Sometimes I do.  I’ve been involved in exhibiting in Monte Carlo for a long time. My first exhibition there was in 1988. Then I started exhibiting with Monte Carlo Fine Arts Gallery and because of that, I’ve done a lot of paintings, reconstructing the social scene. The imaginery world of the 1930’s. The glamorous cars, people and clothes, and all that gives a wealth of inspiration. I also do London scenes as well, rather than just motor racing scenes.

It must be quite a challenge painting scenes from the '30’s when you were not there to witness it yourself?

Well I use lots of references for the clothes and architecture for how it was back then but I have to be careful in my research in order to portray everything as it was.

How do you research? Do you look at fashion books?

Well I have a library with lots of books, photographs, magazines and many things I can refer to, although not too many fashion books. It’s more about getting the feeling of that time, rather than exacting every detail. I’ve got motorsport magazines dating back to 1949. For everything after the war, I have some sort of reference for it.

Lunch at Prescott by Alan Fearnley

How do you come up with the scenes. Do you make them up yourself?

I usually make it up myself but sometimes people can be very specific in what they want. I had a Scottish client who had retired to Monte Carlo and he collected model T Fords. I did an imaginery painting for him of Casino Square, really in the very early years of the century where the buildings didn’t look at all like they look now. But I was able to get reference for them and actually his family, friends and other people all gathered together in Casino Square and with a couple of his model T Fords and a Cadillac which he had as well. Occasionally these things can get a little out of hand and become fairy-tale like. I try not to be too Walt Disney about it and get a sense of realism even though I am creating something from a hundred years  or so ago.

With an idea like that, do you already have that in your mind before you put it on canvas?

No not really. It’s really a case of starting a sketch or layout and doodling away at it for quite often several days. Then an idea appears and develops and I introduce more elements until it has the look I want. Then I start work on the painting.

Isn’t it difficult getting the lighting and reflections correct?

Well yes but that’s the job of the artist. It’s what I do hopefully successfully most of the time. It’s always a challenge but it isn’t something you are aware of. As you start to paint, you paint whatever is necessary for the painting.

A lot of your work has many romantic scenes with landscapes and picnics. Are you a romantic?

I would like to think so, yes. I think we all have romantic memories of things. The motorcar has been an enormous influence in the past century. We have all taken our girlfriends out in our jalopies which broke down. All those sort of things and it’s nice to rekindle it in paintings.

Summer of '49 by Alan Fearnley

I notice you mostly paint Classic Cars.

I do now. I used to paint a lot of F1 things but I can’t remember the last time I painted a modern F1 car. Although in actual fact, I have a commission for next year to paint a 1988 former Williams car. But these things come around very rarely and I really prefer cars of the 1930’s, 50’s and 60’s from a visual point of view.

What do you think it is in particular that makes them different from the modern cars?

Well the cars of the 1930’s are a lot more intricate. Once we got all the enveloping bodies in the late 40’s and 50’s, the visual interest in the car was lost to a certain extent. When cars have separate wings, headlines, running boards and louvres down the bonnets etc. there’s an enormous amount of visual interest in the car itself. As cars have developed, it’s disappeared  and modern cars are totally bland. Some cars of the 1960’s like the E-type Jaguar are extremely difficult to paint because in a sense, the shape is too perfect. The curves are very subtle and to get the correct shape is far more difficult than painting a 1920’s Bentley, although there are lots of things on the Bentley to paint.

Lunch Break at Prescott

That’s probably the best compliment you can give to the designers of the E-Type.

Yes it’s just about perfect.

While exhibiting in Monte Carlo, you must have seen a lot of races.

Yes, I exhibited for 11 years at the Hotel de Paris to coincide with the F1 Grand Prix. I’m not too worried about watching the racing these days but I like to wander around the paddocks etc.

I guess you must have been able to be in the pit stops close to the drivers then?

Not actually during the F1 racing but a lot of the drivers used to come into the exhibitions, so I met lots of them. I knew Derek Bell very well because his agent was my agent. I also got friendly with Roy Salvadori as well. He was a very nice man. The guy who actually represented me there at Monaco Fine Arts was Michael Key and he was in fact a Lotus driver in the early 60’s. He drove along side Jim Clark. He unfortunately had a very bad accident which ended his driving career and he then became an art dealer and moved to Monaco.

Monaco Pits 1957 by Alan Fearnley

Do you get inspired by other artists?

Not from motoring artists. There are other English artists who inspire me and a particular favourite of mine was called Monings who died in the 1950’s. He painted horses but certainly his style of painting influenced me a bit.

Has there been a development in your own style and techniques through the years?

Yes there has. I started off painting impressionistic landscapes and motoring and railway subjects in the 70’s. Then in fact my style became tighter and tighter and more restricted as I started painting F1 cars. I think largely because of the advertising which has to go on the car. Now I find that my style has become loser again and I find myself moving back to a slightly more impressionistic and dashed off style of painting.

The reason why I ask that question is because on your website you have your painting of ‘Twelve Wild Horses’ which is quite different.

It’s a complete ‘one off’. I did some work for Chris Rea and he has a song called Daytona and in that song there is the line ’12 wild horses with silver chains’. I had the inspiration to do that painting for six or seven years before actually deciding to do it because it was so out of style with the sort of things I usually do. Anyway, I got down to it and am really pleased with it but it really is a one off.

Twelve Wild Horses by Alan Fearnley

When I saw it, all sorts of questions came into my mind and I find it intriguing.

Well as an artist, I just felt it was something I had to do. I don’t suppose I will do anything like that again though.

Have you had an inspiration like that before, where you had to paint something?

No not really. There are lots of paintings I want to do but nothing I felt I had to do in the same way.

Are there any specific paintings which you would still like to do?

I think I’ve done all the paintings I want to do. Occasionally I do get inspired  to do a painting when I see elements which appeal to me or bring something to mind.

How do you describe yourself? As an Automotive Artist or a Fine Artist?

I usually describe myself as an Automotive Artist but only really to tell people the subject matter I usually paint, although I obviously paint other things as well. I was a member of the Guild of Aviation Artists and Chairman of the Guild of Railway Artists and have painted ships as well. I don’t look upon myself as soley an Automotive Artist.

Sacre Coer by Alan Fearnley

What I hear from a lot of Automotive Artists is that the subject matter limits them from getting more exposure.

Yes, I think motoring art, along with railway and aviation painting doesn’t yet have the same recognition as for instance marine painting. I imagine that is really because motoring art hasn’t been around long enough in a sense. It’s not recognized as Fine Art in general art circles.

Is that just a matter of time?

It may be but it's taking an awful long time.

My view is that the automobile has had such an influence on our culture. Art is a way to capture the changes and moments in time and preserve them for the next generations.

Yes I see it in exactly the same way myself but I think possibly that most motoring artists paint in a fairly strict representational way, whereas most art galleries and exhibitions are looking nowadays for far more modern, abstract work and not for pictures of something.

Not Too Fast by Automotive Artist Alan Fearnley

In recent discussions with curators of car museums and from personal feedback on my social media, it seems that far more reactions are triggered by automotive paintings of nostalgia and memories rather than the super car. Do you recognize that?

To a certain extent but I still think the car has to be special and something people dream about.

What do you consider as the major quality in your artwork which made it so popular?

I think it’s the ability to bring atmosphere of the time and place into my paintings.

In your Mille Miglia painting, you have a wonderful scene of three supercars and big crowd which you captured brilliantly. Have you ever driven in a Mille Miglia?

No I haven’t.  I recently sold one of my cars which was a Lagonda but I still have my XK120 Jaguar and do some gentle rallying and outings in that which I enjoy greatly.

Mille Miglia by Alan Fearnley

Do you still have a dream to create your masterpiece or has that already happened?

I really don’t know. Hopefully I might produce a masterpiece which is better than anything I’ve ever done before but I won’t know it, until I’ve done it.

Do you see it as a challenge to do each painting better than the previous one?

Yes I do really. I don’t chase work any longer but I receive a lot of commissions which I am very happy to do but I paint a lot more what I want to paint now. Even painting for an exhibition there is a tendency to paint picutres which will sell and with commission work, a lot of the decisions are made for me. So if I am not doing a commission, I like to do something which I really feel inspired about or haven’t done before or which I feel that I can make more of.

I see the boundaries of a commission but I can also imagine that it challenges your creativity as an Artist to obbey the request of the customer while remaining creative and doing  what you want to do as an Artist.

That’s true yes. It is a challenge. The great thing about it is that most people who commission paintings are very happy to take the artists influence. Generally speaking, they employ me to produce a piece of artwork for them but there are obviously elements in the painting which has to be done. With a non commission, I feel more freedom to do what I want to do myself.

For more of Alan Fearnleys work, please visit his website.

The post Alan Fearnley Automotive Art Storyteller appeared first on CarArtSpot.

The Dino is not the fastest or the most powerful Ferrari, yet it is a car which represents an important era in the Ferrari history. Brian Long's new book covers the full story of the Dino. Starting with a brief introduction about Ferrari history, it continues to explain the design of the famous V6 engine and the Dino Concept.

Dino The V6 Ferrari by Brian Long

As a tribute to the early death of Enzo Ferrari’s son (Alfre) Dino Ferrari in 1956, Enzo decided to name the V6 engine after him.

In order to increase the production capacity, Ferrari partnered up with Fiat.  The marketing activities of Fiat are illustrated in photos of brochures and posters which provide an excellent insight into the history of both the Fiat line, as well as the Ferrari models.

Dino The V6 Ferrari by Brian Long

Dino The V6 Ferrari by Brian Long

Dino The V6 Ferrari by Brian Long

Dino The V6 Ferrari by Brian Long

Brian did a thorough job of researching all the details. Illustrated in a chapter dedicated to Dino Specials & Special Dinos.

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This book is a wonderful read for anyone interested in the history of Ferrari and an absolute 'must have' for Dino owners.

This book is available at Veloce Publishing ISBN: 9781904788393

The post Dino The V6 Ferrari appeared first on CarArtSpot.