The Office Series – 1955 Jaguar D-Type
Not long after the Second World War, the Jaguar car company decided that they needed to promote themselves with an attention-getting product.
Pen & ink, watercolour pencil on white archival stock
© Paul Chenard 2009
Needless to say, they shook the automotive world by introducing the powerful and sleek XK-120 sports car. Powered by a straight-6 and clothed in a stunning sleek and low body, its performance matched its looks and orders flooded in.
A clocked speed of at least 120 mph suggested that it had potential as racing car, so Jaguar created a lighter, more streamlined of the car, calling it an XK-120-C, or C-Type.The racer won the prestigious 24 hours of Le Mans for 1951 and 1953.
To build on their success, Jaguar created an all-new racer for 1955, and christened it the D-Type. As a factory-built racer, it introduced the strong yet lightweight monocoque chassis. Designed by Malcolm Sayer, it sported a gorgeous aerodynamic body, producing minimal drag. It was powered by a modified XK straight-six engine, and sported disk brakes all around.
The first of 3 Le Mans wins came in 1955, under very sad circumstances, when Pierre Levegh’s Mercerdes SLR lost control and crashed, killing him and 80 spectators. Peter Hawthorn was the winning D-type’s driver, along with Ivor Bueb.
Pen & ink, watercolour pencil and Prismacolor on white archival stock
© Paul Chenard 2009
The D-type won again in 1956, under Écurie-Écosse Team management, with Ron Flockhart and Ninian Sanderson driving, and again in 1957, with again Flockhart, this time teamed up with Ivor Bueb.
By 1958, the D-type was no longer competitive, so the remaining cars were converted to road-specification as the XKSS.
Pen & ink, watercolour pencil on white archival stock© Paul Chenard 2009
Needless to say, they shook the automotive world by introducing the powerful and sleek XK-120 sports car. Powered by a straight-6 and clothed in a stunning sleek and low body, its performance matched its looks and orders flooded in.
A clocked speed of at least 120 mph suggested that it had potential as racing car, so Jaguar created a lighter, more streamlined of the car, calling it an XK-120-C, or C-Type.The racer won the prestigious 24 hours of Le Mans for 1951 and 1953.
To build on their success, Jaguar created an all-new racer for 1955, and christened it the D-Type. As a factory-built racer, it introduced the strong yet lightweight monocoque chassis. Designed by Malcolm Sayer, it sported a gorgeous aerodynamic body, producing minimal drag. It was powered by a modified XK straight-six engine, and sported disk brakes all around.
The first of 3 Le Mans wins came in 1955, under very sad circumstances, when Pierre Levegh’s Mercerdes SLR lost control and crashed, killing him and 80 spectators. Peter Hawthorn was the winning D-type’s driver, along with Ivor Bueb.
Pen & ink, watercolour pencil and Prismacolor on white archival stock
© Paul Chenard 2009
The D-type won again in 1956, under Écurie-Écosse Team management, with Ron Flockhart and Ninian Sanderson driving, and again in 1957, with again Flockhart, this time teamed up with Ivor Bueb.
By 1958, the D-type was no longer competitive, so the remaining cars were converted to road-specification as the XKSS.
Phil Hill in winning Ferraris - 4 Print Series
1 Ferrari 750 Monza Pebble Beach 1955
2 Ferrari 250 TR Le Mans 1958
3 Ferrari 246 F1 Monza 1960
4 Ferrari 156 F1 Monza 1961
This series highlights Phil Hill's great successes in Ferraris, culminating with his 1961 World Championship win. This is the only series ever created on Phil Hill.
Each illustration is available as a limited edition of 250 signed and numbered 22" x 17" premium archival Giclee prints.
Mr Hill signed the first 25 of each of the 4 illustrations, which are available directly through me.
Phil Hill 1927-2008: An American Hero
Working drawing for future serigraph limited edition, pencil on board © Paul Chenard 2007
Hand-drawn birthday card, pen and ink on card
© Paul Chenard 2007
Phil Hill Collection
I’m very sad to hear that Phil Hill, one of my great heroes, has passed away.
Here is a quote from the Race Legends website:
Hill had a varied racing career beginning in 1947 and stretching over 20 years. He was remarkable in winning both his first and last race outings. He won the 24 Hours of Le Mans three times for the team of Enzo Ferrari, Sebring 12 Hours three times and a host of sports car, endurance and Formula One races. He was also the fastest man in an MG, setting a land-speed record for the British firm. Hill was a long-time contributing editor to Road & Track Magazine.
I actually never heard of him until I started reading his Salon features in Road & Track magazine. His articulate and retrospective analysis’s actually nurtured my curiosity in the history of motor sports, and pushed me to find out more, to read as much as I could on the subject.
That’s when I really learned of his amazing accomplishments in a great variety of racers, and his artistry in Ferraris. My research also showed me that no one had encapsulated his success for the Ferrari Team in art. This led me to create a series of illustrations on his wins with them.
Mr Hill not only chose to feature them on his website, but also agreed to sign 100 prints of the series. Keep in mind that this happened just over a year ago, so it was an incredibly difficult task for him. His signature was obviously effected by the Parkinsons, but he none-the-less pushed on and did the series.
His son Derek was kind enough to take some snapshots of his dad signing, and sent them out to me, and they are now my treasured keepsakes.
Godspeed, Phil Hill 1927-2008...
Pen & ink on vellum, digitally painted © Paul Chenard 2006
This series highlights Phil Hill's great success in Ferraris, culminating with his 1961 World Championship win.
* Note: At a request of Phil Hill's Family, all Phil Hill artworks are removed from his website until sometime in November, 2008.
Sir Stirling Moss OBE - a British National Treasure
Pencil on white archival stock © Paul Chenard 2007
Born on September 17, 1929, Sir Stirling Moss OBE is one of the world's premier drivers of the 1950's and early 1960's.
He excelled in all types of vehicles in all types of races – he is often called "the greatest driver never to win the World Championship". He was successful in race and sports cars made by Aston Martin, Cooper, Ferrari, Lotus, Jaguar, Maserati, Mercedes, Sunbeam, and Vanwall.
He made history in 1955 by winning, along with his navigator, journalist Denis Jenkinson, the Mille Miglia in a record time of 10 hrs, 7 mins, 48 secs, nearly a half an hour ahead of second place Juan Manuel Fangio.
Sir Moss is now a very popular attendee and participant at vintage racing festivals around the world.
Phil Hill and Pebble Beach 1955
Pencil "remarque" on archival Giclee print of one of my illustrations © Paul Chenard 2007
Phil Hill Collection
At the Pebble Beach weekend in 1955, Phil Hill won the race driving a Ferrari 750 Monza. But on the same weekend, he also won Best of Show at the Pebble Beach Concours d'Élégance with his self-restored 1931 Pierce Arrow Model 41, formally belonging to his Aunt. In one weekend, he showed his utter skill as a racer and a restorer.
I thought it would be great to combine the two accomplishments in one piece. I did a pencil sketch "remarque" of his Best of Show win on a Giclee print of my Pebble Beach race illustration and sent it to Mr Hill as a gift. I was told that he and his family very much appreciated it.
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