Commission - Dan Gurney

 

This piece was commissioned by a customer from the US who had previously purchased five of Emma's prints.  A lifelong fan of Dan Gurney with an almost encyclopaedic knowledge of his achievements on and off the race track.

Dan Gurney has always been one of my heroes and not simply due to his skill as a driver.  Dan did a lot of design and engineering, and racing cars still use the Gurney Flap he developed.  He drove all sorts of different cars, From NASCAR to Indy, F1 to LeMans, and everything from dirt to asphalt - and was the only American driver to win an F1 race (at Spa-Francorchamps) in a car of his own design and construction.
 ~ Client.

Once we had discussed size and price and agreed on the terms we jumped straight into image research.  The client was keen to provide some input in this area and their knowledge of Emma's previous work helped steer their image suggestions.  

So many photos from so many different angles, but after two weeks of searching there was one image that stuck out.  The image we chose epitomizes "the thrill of victory"; Dan with his bottle, spraying champagne with an enormous grin on his face.
~ Client.

Drawing began almost immediately, at the beginning of May, with an existing project with no particular deadline set aside to make way for the Dan Gurney project.  The client was happy for updates to be posted on social media and expressed a desire for a limited edition run of prints to be made available so that others might share the artwork.  As is always the case progress photos and a number of videos were shared with the client as the image started to come together.

Emma's painstaking attention to the smallest details bring me joy every time I look at this work of art.  It's still difficult for me to conceive how someone can turn graphite and paper into something so beautiful.  Her shading work is exquisite and the details she captured - down to the stitching on Dan's jacket and the drops of champagne on his sleeves - are something to behold.
 ~ Client.

 Upon completion the client was away from home so the framing was delayed until they returned, at which time we ordered our standard international shipping box from our supplier and took Dan to be framed.  The client was sent photos of various frame and mount options to choose from and framed per their selection before being shipped.

Dan arrived at my home in Austin on June 21st, 57 years and 7 days after his victory at LeMans.  Quite appropriately, he travelled through France on his way to Texas.  I like to think that maybe, just maybe, the truck driver took a backroads detour through LeMans on his way to Charles de Gaulle airport.

What a splendid thing to be a part of; Emma and Andrew were simply delightful to work with and I couldn't be happier with the final result!
 ~ Client