1 Principles of
automobile motion
M
ost pictorial representations of motorcars
generally depict them in motion both on
and off the track. With this in mind, I have
decided to devote this first chapter to
precisely that subject, but will only briefly outline
the principles which apply. Talk of drag coefficients
and aerodynamics won’t really mean that much
to the artist; what is important is for the student
of automobile art to understand, especially with
racing cars, is that aerodynamics increase a car’s
performance by helping it go faster and stick to
the road like glue when cornering, etc.
Three aerodynamic forces act on an
automobile: Drag, Lift and Side Force, combined
with parallel forces acting on three axis – X, Y and
Z – as well as the moments rotating round these
axis: X = Roll (Mr); Y = Pitch (Mp) and Z = Yaw
(My).
I am not saying for one moment that to
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become successful as an automobile artist you
have to understand vehicle aerodynamics, but it
does help to understand, to a certain degree, how
and why various cars act in different ways when in
motion.
The two most obvious forces which could
influence how the artist portrays an automobile in
motion is pitch and roll. If you are portraying cars
at speed, especially Formula One or Group C sports
cars, they will pitch back around their Y axis (see
fig 4). This pitching moment is related to the angle
of attack of the wind over the car’s nose, or if you
are depicting a car cornering hard, the side forces
come into play showing roll around the X axis.
Aerodynamics, of course, play a major role
in the design of modern Grand Prix cars: as well
as the all-too-familiar rear wing, we now have
bargeboards, winglets, diffusers, aero flaps and
chimneys; the list is endless because of the
 Fig 2.8 (below)
Another workshop pencil sketch, this time a famous
sports car from the 1950s, the Italian-built Lancia
D24. It was this model, driven by Alberto Ascari, which
claimed victory in the 1954 Mille Miglia.
It’s workshop scenes like this that make interesting
compositions in their own right, and this car was in
for a major transmission overhaul with its wheels off
and front suspension dismantled. Remember, under a
car’s bodyshell there are a host of components, so try to
understand as much as possible about how it works.
This sketch was drawn in an A3 wire-bound 90gm
sketchbook using soft pencils; i.e. B
and 2B, plus a 4B for
emphasising darker
shaded areas.

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 Fig 3.2/1
Using the centre lines on the perspective
box grid (fig 3.2) for the X, Y and Z
plots (X = length, Y= width and Z
= height), you can adopt whatever
scale you feel is appropriate in
any measurement which suits
the subject you are drawing
– the larger the object in real
life – i.e. an aircraft carrier
– the smaller the scale,
otherwise you might need
a very large piece of paper!

another method: isometric projection,

where all lines remain parallel, drawn at
30 degree right angles to one another,
all vertical lines remaining vertical (see
fig 3.2/3), but more about this later.
Throughout my career as a Technical
Illustrator in the aircraft and automobile
industries, the more common perspective
grid was used (see fig 3.2), and I found this to
be the most useful method with the convenient
three axis, the X, Y and Z centre lines, as used in
the automobile design process.
A car’s basic dimensions can be plotted using
any scale required on these centre lines, thus
enabling the illustrator to construct the basic
overall dimensions of the vehicle portrayed i.e.
X = length, Y = width, and Z = height. Once these

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 Fig 8.11/1
Shown here is my very first
thoughts for this painting,
drawn on a piece of 6 x
4½in/15 x 11cm scrap paper,
using a fine line ballpoint pen,
marker pens and correction
fluid.
If an idea comes to you at any
time, get your thoughts onto
paper as quickly as possible,
then develop the idea when you
have more time, eventually
creating the final image.

Fig 8.11/2
For this painting I produced two
separate working drawings, eventually
mating them to create the final
composition. This was necessary as I
had to undertake very detailed research
about which buildings were actually
there in 1937 (when this painting is
based).
The two W125s were produced from
many photographs supplied from
Daimler Chrysler Classic archives.

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Fig 8.11/3
1937 Monaco Grand Prix – Watercolour
53.7 x 37.5cm/21 x 14½in
For this particular painting, I decided to create a view
looking back at the famous waterfront as the cars race
along it. If you stood on the same spot today, fewer than
six of the buildings from 1937 remain.
The first thumbnail sketch (see Fig 8.11/1 opposite, top)
was created virtually as a doodle using fine line pens,
plus markers in cool and warm greys.
During my visits in recent years, I have taken photos to
use as reference material to check on colour and period
architectural accuracy. To create the two W125 Mercedes
Benz GP cars, photo references from Mercedes Benz’ own
museum in Stuttgart were used. Eventually, I mated
together the two pencil sketches of the background and
cars. (See fig 8.11/2 opposite.)
Motorsport – racing & rallying
The architecture of Monte Carlo is essentially light
beige with Terra Cotta, Yellow Ochre and all shades
in-between. Likewise, the paving on the harbour front
that the cars were racing along is a sandy beige colour.
For the background, I laid on a basic light wash of Burnt
Sienna and Yellow Ochre mix, working in various
shades of the two colours.
The cars themselves were, of course, silver, so I left the
basic white of the paper with a wash of Ultramarine Blue
on the top surface; Paynes Grey was added for the lower
body sides with background colour. For the shadows, I
never use black, but a mix of Sepia and Phaleo Blue, with
odd dashes of Burnt Sienna, finished off with flicks of
Permanent White to add movement.
One trick I use is to paint the portion of the car nearest
(this could apply to a rear view) in a deeper, crisp colour,
whilst fading away in colour depth the furthest portion;
this helps give the illusion of speed and movement.
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