VSCC Prescott 2011

I only made it to Prescott for one day this year so my sketches are a bit loose and scribbly. I'm pretty happy with them though. Got to see lots of old favourites and a few new machines too - and met lots of people whose cars I'd painted or who I'd chatted to on the internet.

Here's a splendid, low slung Piccard-Pictet or PicPic with a 9 litre aero engine...

... and a stunning Peugeot 148 from 1913...

This car has all the details I like. Great proportions and stance, big side exhausts, the GN chassis with it's chain gang and a terrific looking Cirrus Hermes aero engine...

Here's a very elegant looking recreation of a GP Sunbeam. Love those long tails...

I slightly exagerrated the proportions of this tiny Carden - not by much though...

Another powerful looking aero engined special, this time a 1913 Theophile Schneider...

I spent a little longer on this one...

Here's a couple of cars in the car park which I was comissioned to draw. I may still add a bit more watercolour although I quite like it as it is. What's tricky is that they were both black so there won't really be anything to contrast and catch your eye. Perhaps all it needs is a bit of a wash to the sky...

Finally, just as I was thinking about leaving (huge grey clouds gathering overhead) I saw this wonderful creation. I thought I might be able to get a quick sketch in before the deluge. The rain came, and so did the owner, Mark Dixon from Octane magazine. He's a very kind chap, not only did he give me a small feature in a past issue but he also held an umbrella over me while I got the sketch finished! I added the colour back at home. It's an interesting car, based on a model T and built by Peter Stevens - designer of the McLaren F1 no less...

Hotrod Hayride

 I saw some very exciting photos from this event last year. A few months later I saw a poster for it on Eric's Historic Engine Company blog and the seed was sown - I just had to visit. I was a little nervous before I left - I know very little about the Hotrod world other than that I like the cars and the art scene which is such a big part of it but I needn't have worried - they were the nicest bunch of people you could ever meet. The atmosphere was terrific with visitors from France, Belgium, Holland, Finland and even Spain. People sat strumming guitars and singing rock and roll songs by their tents, there was a soap box race, wall of death, stalls, drag racing, live bands, good food and drink and a constant stream of awesome cars and bikes cruising past. I spent most of the time sketching and loads of people came up to chat so I left feeling that I'd really taken part in the event. So often when you're a photographer you never really get to interact with anybody and you come away from an event having viewed the whole thing through a viewfinder. Anyway, on to the sketches...

One of the first things I saw was this amazing creation with its huge truck wheels - towing a caravan! I got chatting to Mark the owner who told me he'd made a thumbnail sketch and then built it himself in three months out of the most unlikely collection of parts. He certainly nailed the proportions and stance and it all tied together perfectly. To be able to design and build your own car just blows my socks off...

Here's the first of a string of Model A Fords and perhaps my favourite car - a 34 Coupe with a huge Chrysler V8 in it. I found out that it's quite local to me so I'll be visiting to do some more sketches soon...

This flathead V8 was also in a great looking car - it looked like it would have been right at home at Bonneville. Below is a very smart looking Model A roadster in black with a tan roof...

 

This Chevrolet Cab-over was finished in bare metal and towered over everything else. It's a great bit of design and I'm not sure I've done it justice here...

 I loved the stance of this pickup and the simplicity of the roadster...

Interesting air filter arrangement...

What caught my eye here was the chopped top combined with the powerful looking engine...

These two are dirt track midget racers imported from the US. The top one originally had a V8 but when Niall bought it it came with a Fiat twin-cam. It looks just right and it made it a much more user friendly car - so much so that Niall was happy to drive the 230 miles from Yorkshire in it! The lower car is powered by a high revving 750cc Crossley...

Finally here a page of thumbnails - I think they work particularly well for Hotrods as the shapes and sizes are so varied and interesting...

And that's it. I took loads of photos too - still need to find time to sort through them before adding them to Flickr. Thanks to all the nice people I met for making it such a memorable weekend - and thanks also to the French people I met who gave me a round of applause after I showed them my sketches - never had that before :)