I am creating a series of portraits of the people who have helped inspire and preserve the Ferrari legend in the United States. These are some of the folks whose passion for their craft has encouraged the preservation and historically accurate restorations of vintage Ferrari. Typically these people work within a small circle of peers and remain anonymous to most enthusiasts. The intention of this portrait series is to pay tribute to these dedicated people. Once the series is complete the paintings will be shown at the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles. I'm also excited about getting some publications on board.
Some of those who I have drawn, painted or currently working with include Steve Beckman, Charles and Brooke Betz with Fred Peters, Parker Hall, Gerald Roush, Patrick Ottis and others. There is a bunch of people I'm excited about including that represent a variety of essential skills or hold a unique position in our industry.
Junior |
Junior's long career of automotive paint work began with George Barris in the fifties. He is particularly proud of his accomplishments on this carbon fiber circular staircase, made by Swift Engineering. Even though it isn't automotive, I'll paint him in whatever environment he wants.
The Body Builder - Steve Beckman |
Steve Beckman's skills in three dimensions just blow me away. When he is done with a body it looks like it was born, not beat out of metal. One owner presented his car in bare metal to showcase Steve's skills.
Resuscitation - Patrick Ottis and David McCarthy |
Dick is one of the pioneers I'd like to include, this sketch was done from a small photo in Prancing Horse.
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Dick Merritt presents his book to Enzo Ferrari |
These images show both the development stage and completed projects. I plan on having about twenty pieces for the show, and am working with a lot of people to get suitable photographs and ideas on how they'd like to be presented.
A bit about my background. I was always "the kid who
could draw" and this led to several art scholarships. I attended three
colleges including Los Angeles Art Center College of Design. I've spent most of
my life pursuing art, but have other interests. I grew up around cars and motorcycles.
I raced TT and Flat Track and my brother raced Top Fuel dragsters. In the
mid-sixties I discovered sports car racing and have enjoyed recreating racing
scenes ever since. My main art/automotive focus is Ferrari 1947~67 and I've
owned both vintage and contemporary Ferrari. I was a major participant in the
Ferrari at 50 exhibit and the first (if not the only) person to be named artist-in-residence at the
Petersen Automotive Museum. I worked for the Betz & Peters vintage Ferrari
collection for ten years and then joined Randy Ema who restores Duesenberg and
other classics. These years in
restoration gave me a mechanical intimacy that few artists possess. Classic
rock 'n roll has also played a major role in my artistic outlook. I've been
fortunate to have access to, and even collaborate with, some legendary
photographers in that field.
Please drop me a line with any comments or suggestions.
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Gerald Roush
This one had its challenges. I didn't have many photo references for this, but Gerald's daughter sent me a photo of him at his desk that she liked. I too liked that idea but needed a lot more info and used over 160 reference shots. I did a video interview with Gerald back in the 90s and reviewed that footage. Ultimately I took pictures off the TV screen and did some charcoal sketches from those. I used the sketches as reference for his likeness.
I
did a small portrait and the likeness was fine but it didn't have any
story, any punch, just a face. I remember being in his office,
surrounded by files and books and papers, the printer busily churning
out the next issue of the Ferrari Market Letter. I felt like I was in
the huge library described in Faust and wanted to convey that in the
portrait. So I (loosely) based the painting on his desk area with
bookshelves towering over him, relaxed and relating a story of how he
got involved with Ferrari in the first place (the magazine on the
typewriter is the source). I didn't make the background exactly like his
environment, there's no memorabilia, just reference material, but it
conveys what I wanted to say.
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Next up is Parker Hall of Kilamanjaro Designs... I'll keep you posted.
The Historian |