Land Speed Record Art

From August 5th to September 15th, the Royal Automobile Club in London is hosting a show of art featuring British wheel-driven Land Speed Record holders.

Rupert Whyte, owner of the Historic Car Art Gallery, has curated the exhibition.

I was lucky to be one of the 11 artists chosen to submit art to the show, and the only North American artist invited.


Donald Campbell's Bluebird-Proteus CN7 on it's way to a world-record speed of 403.10 mph (648.73 km/h) on Lake Eyre, Australia on July 17, 1964.
Acrylic, pen&ink and colour pencils on 24"x 10.5" (60.9cm x 25.4cm) watercolour paper
© Paul Chenard 2015

In the art that I submitted, I wanted to show how once the driver committed to their record run, they were completely alone with themselves, their car, and their God.


1000 HP Sunbeam - Henry Segrave - Land Speed Record - 203.79 mph -
Daytona Beach, Florida - March 29th, 1927
Pen & ink and markers on 16"x 8" red archival paper © Paul Chenard 2017


Irving Napier Golden Arrow - Henry Segrave - Land Speed Record - 231.45 mph - Daytona Beach, Florida, USA - March 11th, 1929
Pen & ink and markers on 16"x 8" yellow archival paper © Paul Chenard 2017


Campbell-Railton Blue Bird - Sir Malcolm Campbell - Land Speed Record -
301.33 mph - Bonneville Salt Flats, Utah, USA - September 3rd, 1935
Pen & ink and markers on 16"x 8" blue archival paper © Paul Chenard 2017


MG EX 135 - A. T. Goldie Gardner - 1,500 Class Record - 204.3 mph -
Dessau, Germany - June 2nd, 1939
Pen & ink and markers on 16"x 8" green archival paper © Paul Chenard 2017

It’s a huge honour for me to be part of something so special.

The World's Fastest film

Since the 1930’s, the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah has been the place where dreamers and adventurers have gathered to pursue their quest for the limits of speed.

Many land speed records have been taken on this vast flat expanse of salt over the decades.

Even today, long-time speed chasers work tirelessly to reach a new record for their class of vehicle.



German filmmakers Alexandra Leir and Laia Gonzalez are working on a documentary film “The World’s Fastest” about these people and their passion.











They have a KICKSTARTER fundraising campaign in place to raise funds for their wondeful project. You can look into it and contribute here:
www.kickstarter.com/projects/1380496226/the-worlds-fastest-land-speed-racing-in-bonneville







I think that it’s a very worthwhile and interesting subject to tackle, showing the power of passion.
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Bluebird-Proteus CN7 Record Car

The Campbell family legacy of breaking land speed records goes back to Sir Malcolm Campbell born in the county of Kent, England in 1885.

He was a racing driver and journalist who took on the challenge, between 1924 and 1935, of setting numerous land speed records in various cars that he choose to christen “Bluebird”.

Sir Malcolm passed away in 1948, and his son Donald, born in 1921, decided to take on the challenge of speed.

He started on water with his father’s old record boat Bluebird K4. With modifications, the boat showed great promise, but he did not manage to set any new records with it.

Donald commissioned a new boat the Bluebird K7 of extremely advanced design, and through the 1950’s, set many new water speed records.

At the end of the 1950’s, he commissioned a land speed record car, which he christened Bluebird-Proteus CN7. It was a stunningly beautiful car, powered by a modified Bristol-Siddeley Proteus turbine engine driving all 4 wheels.


Corgi #153 Proteus Campbell Bluebird (1960-1965)

In 1960, he brought Bluebird to the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, USA for testing. After various trial runs, making adjustments all along, Campbell crashed CN7, damaging it extensively and putting himself in hospital.

It was rebuilt through 1962 with a tail fin to add stability and was tested in 1963 on Eyre Lake, a normally dry lakebed in Australia.

After many months of bad conditions for a land speed run, there was a break in the weather and on July 17, 1964, Campbell decided to go for it.


Bluebird-Proteus CN7 on it's record run
Acrylic, pen&ink and colour pencils on 24"x 10.5" (60.9cm x 25.4cm) watercolour paper
© Paul Chenard  - Original art available -

On his two courageous runs, he brought Bluebird to an average speed of 403.10 mph (648.73 km/h), a new world land speed record for a wheel-driven car. Victory was his!!!

Sadly, Donald Malcolm Campbell CBE was killed while attempting a new world water speed record in the modified Bluebird K7 on Coniston Water, Lancashire, UK on the 4th of January 1967.

Thirst for Speed – Sir Henry Segrave

Sir Henry Segrave was a quiet, intelligent man with a lust for speed.

It started in 1915 while he was home recovering from battle wounds that his father picked-up a 20hp two-seater Singer.

After the Great War, he drove a 1914 Opel in the first post-war Brooklands race, and got completely hooked.

An acquaintance of his was connected to the Sunbeam-Talbot-Darracq automotive company, so he soon joined their team as a works driver.
Sir Henry Segrave racing a 1923 Sunbeam to win the French Grand Prix
Mobil "The Story of Grand Prix motor racing" card, art by Roy Nockolds

He was quite successful through the early to mid 1920’s with them, scoring some Grand Prix wins.

At this point, Sunbeam starting developing special cars aimed at achieving new land speed records. In 1926, he brought a V-12 Sunbeam to a new record of 152.33 mph.
Sir Henry Segrave reaching 203.79 mph
16"x 20" acrylic on canvas by Paul Chenard
For 1927, Segrave went for the ambitious goal of being the first to punch through the 200 mph barrier. In March of that year, driving the red twin-engine “1000HP” Sunbeam, he reached a world-record 203.79 mph on Daytona Beach Florida.

In March of 1929, he returned to Daytona Beach with the 930HP “Golden Arrow” and raised the record again to 231.44 mph.

For 1930, Segrave switched to power boats in an attempt to be the fastest man on water. Piloting Miss England II, he was trying to exceed a speed of 110mph when his boat tumbled and this courageous pioneer was killed at the age of 34.
Sir Henry Segrave in the 1000HP Sunbeam
Etched copper printing block, 7cm X 2.75cm (shown in reverse), circa ?

"Boys of Bonneville" Documentary Film

There is a new documentary film out entitled "Boys of Bonneville". Though I’ve yet to see it, it looks quite promising.


Here is the movie’s synopsis, taken from the website www.boysofbonneville.com:

Boys of Bonneville: Racing on a Ribbon of Salt is about an America that has all but disappeared, when lucrative business deals were cemented by a handshake and state of the art automobiles were designed on the backs of envelopes. It tells the story of an unsung hero and self-made man, David Abbott Jenkins, who, with almost superhuman stamina and boyish charm, set out to single-handedly break every existing land speed record on his beloved Bonneville Salt Flats of Utah. More than a century later, many of “Ab’s” records remain unbroken and the legacy lives on in his custom car. Looking like something Batman would have owned, the story comes full circle when Ab’s son Marv, restores the 12-cylinder, 4800-pound “Mormon Meteor” to its glory days for a ceremonial lap on the salt.There is a new documentary film out entitled "Boys of Bonneville". Though I’ve yet to see it, it looks quite promising.

The film features pristine archival footage of Ab, Marv, and their races, as well as recently shot HD interviews with a stellar list of car and racing aficionados (including Jay Leno and Col. Andy Green, the current land speed holder). The car resides in Salt Lake City’s Price Museum of Speed (www.pricemuseumofspeed.org) and will be visiting select cities as part of its Film Festival tour.

The movie’s director Curt Wallin and it’s producer John Greene are both being interviewed this evening on SPEED Channel’s Wind Tunnel, hosted by Dave Despain at 9:00 pm ET.

I think this might be a movie worth paying attention too.

An MG TF, Popular Mechanics, and the Look-off

A few weeks ago, I had a great visit from my friend Peter Felder, who drove over 1800 kms from Mississauga to visit me and see Nova Scotia.

We made our way to the Look-off near Canning so that Peter could get a stunning view of the fertile Annapolis Valley.

On our way there, something caught my eye in the form of an MG TF sticking out of the garage of Country Barn Antiques in Port Williams.

Of course we had to stop and take a look. Though the car was a little rough and tired, it was still quite nice to look at.

As we rummaged through the store, I found a gorgeous March 1929 issue of Popular Mechanics. It has a beautiful colour cover illustration of a land speed record car on the beach at Daytona, Florida. The feature article covers man’s quest for more speed. It’s a perfect addition to my collection …


We did finally escape to get to our destination, and to take in the breath-taking view.

Land Speed Record Cars - Part 2

There is renewed fascination with the land speed record, with two major efforts in the works.

There is the North American Eagle team using a highly modified F-104 Starfighter for their attempt at a new land speed record of 800 mph (1287 km/h)!

There is also the British Bloodhound SSC team, aiming for a record of 1000 mph (1,609 km/h)!

Will's Cigarette Cards "Speed" 2nd series (England) 1938

Toy land speed record cars from the past are not the only items available to fans of the sport.

Eagle Annual #3 "Motor Racing and Sports Cars", illustration by George Pye (England) 1950's

Many printed items are also out there celebrating the land speed records; magazines, books, print ads, collector cards, prints and art out there celebrating speed at the edge.


So-Cal Belly Tank Lakester
Prismacolor pencils on white archival stock 9"x 4"
© Paul Chenard 2008
Gary Grant Collection

Here are the ones I’ve picked up over the years, and the little bit of art I’ve done on the subject.
Enjoy!

World on Wheels Cards No.43, No.23 and No.38

Malcolm Campbell in Bluebird at Pendine Sands, January 1927
Pencil on paper, antique frame
© Paul Chenard 2006

Land Speed Record Cars - Part 1

People have always been focused and fascinated with speed.

From the speed of your computer to how quickly you can paint a room, everyone has some kind of stake in it.



Lledo/Kelloggs Land Speed Legends
Bluebird 1935 & Railton Mobil Special 1947 (England) 1993

But there is a small, but determined group who are steadfastly focused on the land speed record. People like Camille Jenatzy, Ralph DePalma, Malcolm Campbell, Henry Seagrave, George Eyston, John Cobb, Craig Breedlove, Art Arfons and Andy Green are some of the brave pioneers who pushed the limits to achieve the land speed record.

Dinky #220 Small Open racing Car (England) 1952

The publics fascination with this is, of course, supported by toy producers who make miniature versions of the exotic machines used to achieve a new record.

Here are some of the ones I have.
Enjoy!

Dinky #221 "Speed of the Wind" Distance Car & #23P MG Record Car (England) 1950's & 1947, CIJ No.3/2 Renault "Étoile Filante" Racing Car (France) 1957, Corgi #153 Proteus Bluebird (England) 1966

Chime Record Car, Tin Wind-up (Canada) 1930's

So-Cal Belly Tank Lakester

Prismacolor pencils on white archival stock 9"x 4"
© Paul Chenard 2008

Gary Grant Collection

The American hot rod scene developed very quickly after WWII. G.I.’s with speed on their minds picked up surplus WW2 fighter belly fuel tanks, and build hot rods around them.

One of the best known is the So-Cal Speed Shop “Lakester”, built by Alex Xydias. It was built using a P-38 belly tank, with a flat-head v-8 stuffed in the back.

In 1951, at the Bonneville Salt Flats, the So-Cal team ran the racer at 145.395 mph, a new record for their class.

Malcolm Campbell in Bluebird at Pendine Sands, January 1927

Pencil on paper, antique frame © Paul Chenard 2006