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Automotive Art
More Artists See And Feel The Beauty of Chrome and Metal

Online art marketplace www.DiscoveredArtists.com reports a growing number of artists who are caught up in capturing cars on canvas.  Although these artists can choose from a world of subjects ranging from naked ladies to breathtaking landscapes and crashing waves, they are fascinated by the lovely curves and flashing metal of car bodies.

Automotive art typically falls into three categories.  Beauty shots that usually are very tight, detailed fine art photographs, nostalgia artworks that set a mood or capture a feeling, and realism portraits where the artist creates a photo quality image of a vehicle using brush and paint.

Automotive beauty art typically is the work of fine art photographers who can turn a tight shot of a hood ornament into a masterpiece.  The fascination and the challenge for an artist is to capture the reflection of light and shadow on polished metal.  The artist sees beauty in the interesting lines, curves and intricate details of grills, chrome strips and other ornamentation that distinguishes one make and model from another.

Working with different types of lenses and by using a number of lighting and digital processing techniques, a fine art photographer focuses his lens on an intricate detail of a car’s body.  His challenge is to capture the reflected light and shadow created by the bends and curves of the metal, and to use his artistic eye to effectively frame the image.
 
The successful result produces a balanced image of vibrant color and contrast that at first glance is simply a beautiful artwork.  But, what adds interest to the artwork is that the image invites the viewer to puzzle over and then decipher the make, model and featured body part.  What appears to be a colorful portrait may on further study be a hood vent, the chromed curve of a fender, a door handle, or a tail light shot with a macro lens.

Classic Car Orange 07.15.07-018 is one in a series of 36 images by fine art photographer Paul Hasara.  Art buyers appreciate this artist’s attention to detail, his artistry and his technical skill.  Hasara skillfully captures the small shadow of the hood ornament, the vibrant color and interesting mirrored reflections in the chrome.  His artistry is evident in the framing of the photo and in his viewpoint.  This fine art photo is the result of flawless execution, an artistic eye and attention to detail that is a classic example of automotive beauty art at its finest.  16″ x 11″ high quality prints of this photo are available online.

Metal Melt by fine art photographer, Vlad Bubnov redefines hot rod. This example of automotive beauty art is actually the reflection of a 1957 Ford Thunderbird in its own chrome bumper.  Bubnov is a master of fine art photography and is especially adept at creatively capturing and playing with light on metal.  His colorful fine art photos sell as limited edition prints that are signed and numbered by the artist.

But, fine art photographs may not completely satisfy a car lover who appreciates the artistry of brushed oil on canvas.  For him, there is a wonderful gallery of automotive nostalgia art and very likely he’ll find a portrait of a long lost love.

Nostalgia art typically is in the realm of the oil painter.  He is the artist who adds feelings to rusted, old metal and makes us long to see the USA in the old Chevrolet.  These are the paintings that make you sigh when you see them and make you feel sad for the old, trusty rusty.  They’re wonderful to own especially if the artist has chosen one of your old favorites for his subject.

Out to Pasture is an original oil painting by artist Robert Hare.  The artist painted this canvas from a photograph he took while on a visit to Whidbey Island in Washington state.  His immediate reaction was that the car had been put out to pasture after faithfully serving its master, abaondoned, and left to rust in the weeds.  The artist felt compelled to honor the old beauty with a portrait in oil.

But, automotive oils aren’t always about a sad story.  Realism artists love to create perfectly painted portraits of vehicles that have won their hearts.  Similar to a portrait of a favorite lady, you’ll find many artists who showcase their heart’s delight in oil on canvas.  They apply their artistic skill to transforming a plain, white canvas into an image of a vehicle ready to roll.  A portrait of pipes and valves, shiny chrome, painted metal, and tires so real you can smell the rubber.

The 61E by artist Robert Goldsberry is a large, 24″ x 30″ original oil painting and is a perfect example of realism in automotive art.  The artist writes, ” My favorite year and make of motorcycle,” and notes that he painted a ”Wild One movie bill and Pabst beer ad” in the background to complete the picture.  The original painting is available for purchase, although it’s not unusual for artists to hold onto realism paintings much the same as car collectors hold onto their favorite autos.

So, the American love affair with the automobile continues strong as evidenced by the growing art sales and interest in cars as subjects.  Many artists paint what they love, but more artists paint what sells.  The popularity of automotive art among collectors, as well as among regular folks is growing.  Good to report that the popularity of cars as artists’ subjetcs is growing, too.  Why paint naked ladies when you can paint a ’59 Impala that sells?

About DiscoveredArtists.com
www.DiscoveredArtists.com is a marketplace for buying and selling original and limited edition artworks.  Independent artists sell directly to the general public.  Prices are set by the artists and artwork is shipped from the artist’s studio.   All major credit cards are accepted.  Artwork may be purchased online and is backed by a satisfaction guarantee of a full refund plus return shipping expense.