PAINTING AT HIGH SPEED
O K , Im a gearhead...I can live with that.
Since childhood I was exposed to most forms of Auto Racing. The major events like The Indianapolis 500, The Daytona 500, Grand Prix of Monte Carlo, 24 Hours of LeMans and Drag Racing were covered by television. While these were powerful influences, stronger still were attending stockcar and sprintcar races at the local bullrings in Ohio. I would go to school on Mondays with my ears ringing and the smell of racing fuel, oil and burnt rubber in my nose. As an AutoRacing Illustrator, I intend to show how our senses are invited to enjoy this dynamic sport. Most of this can be done with the use of vibrant colors, dynamic design, contrasting shapes and rhythmic lines.
AutoRacing is an extremely visual sport, these brightly colored crafts shriek by us at unbelievable speeds. So the challenge is to combine elements of illustration, photography and movies to make the mind sense motion. Showing movement through the artwork requires the illusion of cars blurring, rooster tails from fuel or rain and vapor trails coming off the inverted wings. Our ears are bombarded by the growl of air wrenches, screaming tires, roar of the horsepower and the banging of the ground effects on these earthbound planes. The P.A. speakers and the roar of the crowd are deafened by the thundering screams of these packs of beasts. For those who've never been, I implore you attend any form of motorsports. The smells and tastes come in a wild variety. The food and drink are some of the finest available if you know where to look. The mixture of powerful racing fuel, oil smoke and burnt rubber are intoxicating and seem addictive. Portraying touch is done by the contrasting textures of the grandstands, fences, infields, track and car surfaces. These pale to the feeling of the air-pressure change, shockwaves and aerodynamic wake that explodes from these exotic machines as they rip past us!
Technical accuracy of these ships and their environments is critical! There are subtle differences between Indycars, Formula 1 and Champcars, from NASCAR to IROC. There is a huge variety of Sportscars, Superbikes, Prototypes, Rallycars, Dragracing, Off-Road, Landspeed Record Holders and countless other formulas. Even more diverse are the tracks, Superspeedways, Deserts, Shorttracks, natural terrain Roadcourses, Runways, Salt Flats and frantic Streetcourses. In and around these are pits, hospitality suites, campgrounds, paddocks, infields, grandstands, hillsides and stadiums.
There is a fusion of humans and technology with a direct connection to the loyal fans. I hope to remind race fans what they have experienced and spark the curiosity of new ones. This is a challenging sport that requires HIGH VELOCITY ILLUSTRATION or PAINTING AT HIGH SPEED.
Raymond E. Pargeon
HIGH VELOCITY ILLUSTRATION
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