car deco - delorean dmc-12

The DMC-12 was conceived by ex-GM executive John Delorean as an “ethical” sports car — affordable, safe, efficient, and reliable. When introduced, the car proved to be comfortable, and stylish… but also underpowered, and pricey. A recession decimated sales, and (in an attempt to save his company) Delorean became entangled in an FBI drug sting. He was eventually exonerated, but too late to save his company.

In the ‘80s, I didn’t fall in love with the car because of “Back to the Future”; it was Giugiaro’s daring design… the origami shapes, unconventional bare metal skin, and dramatic doors. When I was a kid, a guy up the street from me had a Delorean. Every time he drove by, the world stopped.

As an adult, I now have the pleasure of owning one, of these cars. It’s not fast, but it is reliable, comfortable, and a piece of history. This piece, part of my Car Deco collection, celebrates my infatuation with this still-futuristic piece of kinetic sculpture.

Clay Bar a Delorean?

Due to a lack of garage space, I’ve had to keep my 2000 Honda S2000 outdoors lately. To combat the ill effects of exposure to pollutants and the California sun, I decided to do a clay and wax job… which really brought back its paint. *Note: on the recommendation of a friend, I used an artificial clay bar, which worked well.

Inspired by the results, I thought I’d experiment using the artificial clay bar on my Delorean. Its stainless panels are in very good shape, and in my 17 years of ownership, I’ve never re-grained it. But I wanted to see if the process would improve its finish (after all, its brushed surfaces could hold lots of contaminants). I dropped a masking tape line down my hood, and proceeded to clay one side, to see if there was an observable difference… and (drum roll)…

Kinda.

The experiment took place in my garage, under dim artificial light. In this environment, a slight difference between the passenger’s and driver’s sides can be seen. I moved the car around to observe it with the light hitting it from different directions, and in all instances the small difference remains. However, when viewed outside, under bright, natural light, you can see the the difference is minute.

So, is it worth it? Using the artificial clay bar was quite easy, and not time consuming at all. But the end result was only a mildly cleaner surface. Perhaps if I started with a more contaminated surface the result would be more prominent, but based on this experiment I have to say “no.” I’ve never tried Scotch Bright, or Barkeeper’s Friend (more commonly used products), but my guess is that these would likely yield more dramatic results. Maybe another experiment is in order?

NFTs

NFT’s (or Non-fungible Tokens) are digital assets that take advantage of block chain authentication to prove ownership of original items. Lately, NFT’s have been receiving a lot of coverage as artists and collectors have discovered this new medium.

For more information, check out this article from Forbes.

I’m please to announce that (shortly) a selection of my work will be available as NFT’s. Want to more? Click here!

New Collaboration!

Happy to announce a new collaboration with my friend Fireball Tim Lawrence (best known for designing the Batmobile from the first Tim Burton film). 

He’s publishing a set of movie car trading cards, and the first features my artwork! (The series will include 24 more designs.) My art envisions what the BTTF time machine might look like if if another movie had been made, and it was driven to a time when the world was underwater.

Signed cards are available through his Etsy store for $10. He’s also got trading cards based on other nostalgic interests (i.e. Tony Dow of “Leave It to Beaver”, pin up photography, and more).

I hope you like!

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They Say Imitation is the Highest Form of Flattery, but…

Recently, I received a package from my brother. Knowing I am a Delorean owner, he though I’d appreciate a Delorean-themed neck gaiter. (For those who don’t know, a gaiter is kinda of a scarf that can be work as a face mask… necessary in these COVID times.)

To my surprise, the gaiter featured artwork that was stolen from one of MY illustrations! As you can see from these images, the car illustration on the gaiter is the same as the one on my original piece. Notice the dark gradated lines that cross the rear of the car, the rear wheel… the gradated line that crosses the side mirror and front wheel, and the white gradated line that crosses both wheels. All of these elements are the same on both images. In fact, if you overlayed the images, they would match up.

The seller, LOLLILOLLEPO, has likely stolen the intellectual property of many designers. Pirating takes money out of hard working people’s pockets, and should not be tolerated. I contacted Amazon.com (where the item was purchased) to lodge a copyright infringement complaint. 

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Not Just Any Parking Lot

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The Delorean and “Back to the Future” are icons that are joined at the hip… a fact I didn’t know when I bought my car in 2005. But over the years I learned much of the Back to the Future (BTTF) lore.

Being in Southern California, I’m in close proximity to many of the locations used in the movies. Doc Brown’s house, for instance, is near my latest alma mater (ArtCenter) in Pasadena. This weekend, I had the opportunity to visit the Puenta Hills Mall for a socially-distanced charity car meet. After the meet I took my car to the parking lot pictured here. Why? Because this is the location where the infamous chase scene occurred in the beginning of the first Back to the Future movie. It looks very different now, but this is where Doc sent Einstein back 2 minutes in time, and Marty was later transported in to the 50s after being chased by two Libyans terrorists.

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Audi RS6 Avant

Last Sunday I attended Malibu Cars and Coffee, as I often do. But in addition to the usual beautiful classic cars, I was surprised to see a pair of Audi RS6 Avants being premiered. The car’s elegantly simple design is striking, and the interior seemed like a knockout (I wasn’t allow too close to the cars). If I was in the market for a new car, this would be a compelling choice… sporty, pretty, and utilitarian. The trifecta!

Aston Martin F1 Race Car Build

Well, here’s something you don’t see everyday! The Motoring Club (Marina Del Rey) hosted the Aston Martin Red Bull Racing Team today… and they built an F! race car during the club’s Mexican Grand Prix viewing party.

It was intriguing to see the car take shape, and even how the car fit into its shipping container was kind of interesting. Paired with a great motorsports event, tacos, and a nice crowd and it was a pretty amazing event.

Corvette C8 Roadster

This entry is a bit late, but I recently had the opportunity to attend the premier of the 2020 C8 Roadster at The Motoring Club (Marina Del Rey, CA). In person, the car was quite impressive — the new mid-engine layout give the car a very modern, athletic stance while remaining easily recognizable as a Corvette. Inside, the driver-oriented cabin’s design was modern, and functional. Materials seemed quite nice, and the forward view was great, thanks to the forward positioning of the cabin.

The following day the roadster appeared at Supercar Sunday in Woodland Hills. In natural light it looked even better. Last weekend, the coupe appeared at ArtCenter’s Car classic sporting an attractive bronze paint that gave the car a more understated appearance.

I recently created a graphic render of the roadster… check out the video here.

2019 ArtCenter Car Classic

2019 ArtCenter Car Classic… as always, an amazing concours with some of the rarest, and most beautiful cars on earth! It was incredible to see the famous Lancia Stratos Zero in the flesh (so unbelievably low, and the paint glistened in the natural light). Other favorites: the elegantly simple Pontiac Vivant, and the impossibly beautiful Talbot Lago. Counting the days until the 2020 show!

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