arteauto

June Auction is Open

2012-05-23T22:05:00.004-05:00

1954 24 Heures du Mans

original event poster by Geo Ham

Est. $2,000-3,000

Dear Collector,

Our June auction is now open for viewing, registering and bidding!

As you can see we have a great collection of 1920’s and 1930’s Bugatti brochures, early 24 hours of Le Mans posters, two rare paintings, one by the great German artist Walter Gotschke, the other is one of the few and documented racing paintings produced by the well known Italian artist Nicola Simbari also a beautiful example of the Ferrari of Motorcycles, a MV Agusta homologation racer. You will also find a large array of automobilia for every taste and budget.

We look forward to hear from you and receive your bids. Happy bidding.
See below for more of what you can find at the auction

l'art et l'automobile

arteautoauction.com

l’art et l’automobile’s 27th Catalog auction

2011-11-22T12:30:00.000-06:00

Our holiday 2011 automobilia auction at arteautoauction.com has now started and will end December 14th. You are welcome to view our 368 lots and if you would like to bid on any of our offerings you need to register first. It is fairly simple and quick.

If you have any problems or questions you can reach us at
info@arteauto.com or at 830-864-5040

You can bid by mail, phone, fax, e-mail or directly online. For $15 you can purchase a hard copy of the catalog by contacting us. You can also subscribe to l’art et l’automobile auction catalogs one year subscription (December and June) for $30.

Looking forward to hearing from you.

Happy holidays from the staff at l’art et l’automobile!

The art of the automobile show

2011-10-12T12:11:00.000-05:00

l'art et l'automobile gallery in collaboration with the Kirchman Gallery are proud to present

"The art of the automobile"

a collection of over 50 paintings, sculptures, posters, prints and toys from the early 1900's to date by some of the best automotive artist from around the world.

"Duesenberg" giclee by Alain Levesque

The show will start October 14th., with a reception on

Friday, October 21st from 4-8 pm in conjunction with the

Classic Car Cruise in front of the gallery.

"Bullitt" Movie poster with Steve McQueen

The show will run until Sunday, November 6th with a closing reception that afternoon.

Hope to see you there.

Gallery hours:
Thursday 12-6, Friday & Saturday 11-6,

Sunday 12-5, Monday 11-5

Kirchman Gallery

213 N. Nugent Ave.

Johnson City, TX, 78636

830-868-9290

In the mean time you can visit our website at www.arteauto.com

Our next auction will start November 17th

and will end on December 14th.

For more information contact us.

info@arteauto.com

830-864-5040

Ferrari Books & Memorabilia

2011-07-27T10:52:00.000-05:00

From my 36 years in business as l’art et l’automobile Gallery and later online as arteauto.com, I cannot begin to count how many Ferrari related memorabilia items have passed through our hands.

Being definitely the most revered name in the automobile industry, Ferrari sports and racecars have inspired many writers to publish hundreds of books about the marque. Painters and sculptors use them as a subject in their original artwork, prints and vintage posters. Modelers have built every car Ferrari ever made from scratch built to mass produced die cast.

Over the years, arteauto.com has built up a large and unique collection of those items that we offer for sale to the many Ferrari enthusiasts and collectors around the world.

We invite you to visit arteauto.com and search for Ferrari to see over 150 items relating to this great Italian marque from street to racing machines.

Those items will give you great pleasure decorating your library, den, garage or your automobile museum.

In addition to the pleasure it will provide you with a great investment as many of those items have increased in price a minimum of 10 to 20% yearly.

Enjoy and collect what you like.

Our June 22nd, 2011 auto art memorabilia auction has ended.

2011-06-30T15:46:00.000-05:00

We are pleased with the results as we sold 70% of the lots and are still selling a few more since it ended.

If you missed the end of the auction and see something you like, it might still be available or we might have another copy so do not hesitate to contact us. You can view all the automobilia lots at www.arteautouction.com.

We want to thank all the participants and if you would like to be notified about our future auctions make sure you leave us your email address or other contact information.

Also if you have items you would like to consign to our upcoming auctions you can find all the details on our auction site under “Consign Items” and you should let us know what those auto art items are.

We will have a mini auction with 100 plus lots in September and our next catalog/online auction will be in mid December just in time for Christmas.

If you plan on being in Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in August come visit us, we will be exhibiting at “Retro Auto”

Looking forward to your questions and comments.

Have a good summer.

Arteautoauction.com is presently running their 26th catalog/online automobilia auction that will end June 22nd.

2011-06-06T16:06:00.001-05:00

We have 398 lots offered to the highest bidders.

Some of the highlights are two important original Peter Helck paintings of early American racing in the Northeast; both estimated at $25,000-$35,000.

You will also find an original aquarelle (watercolor) by the famous French artist Geo Ham depicting a 1950’s pit stop at the legendary 24 Hours of Le Mans which he sketched in the pits during the event. Make sure you follow the newest edition of this dramatic event this coming weekend. This past February during the Retromobile exhibit in Paris, two Geo Ham paintings were sold at auction for 145,000€ or $210,000 and 70,000€ or over $100,000, establishing a world record for this very talented and recognized artist and the investment value for great automotive artwork. This is your chance to own a rare automotive piece of history.

Along with many other vintage memorabilia, you will find a spectacular Ferrari 250 SWB model in 1/3 scale or 54” long that was built in Modena by a Ferrari Collector and his son Terzo & Stefano Dalia. One of the best replicas of this car showing it’s very detailed mechanical components. This is an edition of 50 that was created in 2006 and sold through the Ferrari dealerships around the world. It was purchased by such personalities as Luca di Montezemolo, and Piero Ferrari. We are proud to offer #00/50 of this sold-out edition.

You can also browse through the auction site to find a great collection of out of print books, many from the collection of well known Ferrari historian Ed Niles. A good selection of autographed items by the who’s who of the automotive industry and the motor racing world; Carl benz, J.M. Fangio, Enzo Ferrari, Ferry Porsche, Malcom Campbell, just to name a few.

So do not miss the deadline of June 22nd. Enjoy the viewing and the bidding and if you do not like the auction style, you can browse throughout the online store with 600+ pieces of automotive history and purchase them outright.

Enjoy

2009-11-12T13:41:00.000-06:00

If you were driving the beautiful Texas Hill Country Roads this past week, chances are you spotted a procession of vintage car enthusiasts touring our great state. The 12th annual Texas 1000 is an amazing opportunity for car connoisseurs from all over the world to get together and drive 1000 miles throughout the state. This year drivers came from places like New Hampshire, Indiana, New Orleans, even Italy and England. Each day the enthusiasts cover about 250 miles, driving the finest Grand Touring roads in the world, our Hill Country.

It was remarkable sitting at the end of the road hearing the thunderous motors heading up toward Jacques Vaucher’s l’art et l’automobile Gallery Tuesday afternoon. The automobiles were spectacular, and included cars like the Jaguar C type, Ferrari 330 GTC, Shelby 350 GT, The brand new Porsche Panamera.

As the drivers made their way into Jacques’ Gallery, they were able to look around at the breathtaking collection of vintage automobile memorabilia that he collects and sells. Jacques Vaucher, owner of l’art et l’automobile opened his first Automotive Art Gallery in 1975 in New York City. He has become known for decorating garages, homes, offices & museums of automotive enthusiasts around the globe. After opening 3 additional galleries in Manhattan, and one in East Hampton, NY, he expanded by organizing four online catalog Auctions a year. The big Texas sky, and stunning roadways that the Texas 1000 drivers are enjoying this week, are what appealed to the former race car driver Jacques, who in 2006 moved his home and his business to the 80 acre Ranch that hosted our travelers Tuesday. The participants were treated to 4000 square feet of pure paradise for automobile enthusiasts. There are thousands of memorabilia, a library section, a lounge area, a poster gallery, display for original sculpture, showcases full of models, mascots, badges, coach plaques and historic trophies. The walls are decorated with original paintings from some of the best automotive artists around the world. It is truly extraordinary, and everything is for sale. Although the Gallery is open by appointment, and also hosts a variety of luncheons and car clubs regularly; the main business is conducted through an impressive web store and auction house, www.arteauto.com. For the drivers of the Texas 1000, this was a marriage made in heaven. A delectable luncheon was catered by Karen Vaucher, and one could tell immediately that the travelers were right at home. They browsed, shopped, and enjoyed a beautiful spread of food, then at 12:30 the bunch was treated to a very special aerobatics show put on by John Dormer and his team from Kerrville, flying their vintage airplanes. The day was phenomenal. After lunch the Texas 1000 would take them for what they called “navigator’s revenge”, in Fredericksburg. Shopping at all of the local stores would prove to be a great treat for the travelers. That evening they would visit the LBJ Ranch, and Horseshoe Bay Resort, for dinner, and a night of rest and relaxation.

The rest of their journey was filled with spectacular driving roads that snake for miles, entertaining dinners, and stunning views along the way. Their other stops were to include a pilgrimage to Luckenbach, the Trois Estate, Medina Lake, and some impressive museums. They wrapped up their trip Friday in San Antonio, with fond thoughts, and a lot of souvenirs. We are sure that our visitors took pleasure in all of the collected works, museums, local flavor, and sweet country roads. It’s certain they made new friends, great memories, and thoroughly enjoyed their visit to our great state.

The Recognition of the Hot Rod in Automotive Art

2009-06-01T14:11:00.000-05:00

Yes, the inevitable is happening.

Once upon a time, only a few years ago, if you went to an art exhibition like the Saturday night AFAS show preceding the Pebble Beach Concours, all you saw depicted was classic cars, mostly prewar cars like Duesenbergs, Bentleys, etc.
Then depictions of muscle cars started creeping in, on cat’s feet so to speak, but this was inevitable because some of the greatest car artists of our time are former ad illustrators like Art Fitzpatrick who painted the immortal Pontiac Grand Prix and GTO illustrations. At age 20, he was already working with Howard "Dutch" Darrin, designing the 1940 Packard four-door.
Tom Fritz , of Ventura, CA, was one of the first American fine artists to "break the mold" and depict the cars he grew up with;not LeTourneau et Marchand Bugattis but good ol' hot rods he saw on the streets of San Fernando, an LA suburb. Tom's vivid childhood recollections of the motorcycle and automotive cultures prevalent in Southern California during the 60's and 70's are reflected in his work.Among his clients are Harley Davidson and his paintings hang in many corporate collections and museums including the NHRA Museum.
And then, just like out on the lawn of Pebble Beach, hot rods appeared. Oh, the painters, many of them, were familiar with hot rods, heck many either owned or lusted after the ’32 Ford “Deuce” roadster in their youth but never wanted to admit it in polite company at events like Pebble Beach where the talk was all of Hispano-Suizas, Erdmann and Rossi 540Ks, James Young Phantoms and the like.
But now the secret is out. We all be hot rodders. Because fundamentally a car is a car and if it’s mechanical we love it.
The depictions of hot rodding that have appeared in fine art so far are steeped in history—say paintings of hot rods being run at the dry lake beds where hot rodders raced them even before WWII. More modern setting depictions are rarer though recently there has been a blossoming of "cruise-ins", impromptu car shows, at places like drive-in restaurants nationwide.
And then there’s the problem of the commercial cliché—if you show a hot rod in a drive-in restaurant (like the kind where the waitresses rolled out on roller skates to take your order) then you risk painting something that commercial retro-theme restaurants are still currently exploiting.
And once you've opened Pandora's box, how far do you go, because there’s a deep dark secret about hot rods. Now neat and clean hot rods are one thing, but deep down if you research the genre, you find out there’s another vein of hot rodding called the “rat rodding.” Because back in the day hot rodders had enough money to buy Smitty mufflers or Rajo axles but didn’t have enough money to paint the car so they ran them in flat primer. There’s a whole subtext/genre of hot rodders who have no intention of ever finishing their cars to normal “finished car” standards. To them, it is an outlaw statement on four wheels to leave it unfinished.
Call it being “in your face.”
One of the first books to show this side of the car world was the artful softbound Hot Rod by Barry Gifford with David Perry taking the pictures of rough cars built by some rough looking (“wife beater” t-shirts and lots of tattoos) dudes. Perry also wrote the movie Wild at Heart. This book captures the era when driving a hot rod made you a “bad dude” --almost as bad as riding a Harley.
There was a real life example of hot rod meets fine art that I saw a couple years ago at the AFAS tent at Pebble at their party. It was when Chip Foose, a young designer who has worked for the Detroit automakers but who now is famous for his hot rod designs, droe up to their tent in a Ford roadster –the car full of aeroplane parts like exhausts from a WWII fighter!
The artists poured of the tent to see his hot rod and there was plenty of admiration expressed—indicating that, deep down in many an American-born artist famous for depicting classic cars is a hot rodder who knew the names Bill Cushenberry, Dean Jeffries and Gene Winfield long before he ever heard of Sergio Pininfarina or Giorgetto GIugiaro….

by Wallace Alfred Wyss, who is a fine artist whose work is often found in the Marketplace category of our online store.

Razzia: Poster Artist Extraordinaire

2009-03-02T10:14:00.001-06:00

Gerard Courbouleix Deneriaz, commonly known as Razzia, is the last graphic artist who can honestly be called a posterist. In this age of computer art, he is one of the world’s few modern day poster artists.

During the Golden Age before all the new computer technology, advertisers hired the best artists to make unique renderings of the things they wished to sell in order to stand out from their competitors with a strong image. Razzia’s posters embody perfect communication – elegantly modern and executed with uniquely surreal Art Deco brevity.

He began his career as a successful photographer hired to capture “rock & roll giants” like Led Zeppelin, The Rolling Stones, and Pink Floyd. But Razzia began to feel limited by the camera. Looking for an expression that gave him the opportunity to control every detail of composition, he devoted himself to graphic design. In most cases the artist would produce a painting, and when it was approved, would be lithographed with the appropriate text. Razzia still creates his posters from an original painting, a technique not very common in this age. With this new sense of purpose, the need for a new name arose.

Thus, Razzia was born. Over the past 25 years, he has conceived some of the most memorable images in order to grace the contemporary market place. Razzia lives and works in Paris, and has done numerous posters for Louis Vuitton world-wide, including the Parc de Bagatelle Concours d’Elegance and the America’s Cup Challenge. He has also done artwork for various restaurants in the United States and Europe, as well as the Cannes Film Festival, Monte Carlo Country Club, and many others.

We are proud to have been working with Razzia for the last 15 years, and you can see many of his images on our website, at www.arteauto.com. Razzia has found his niche by creating compositions that blend perfectly with advertising posters.

arteauto.com Automobilia Blog

2009-02-02T11:01:00.000-06:00

Spin-offs are a way of life. Throughout the 1950’s to the 1980’s, it wasn’t uncommon for one television show to "spin-off" another. Such is the way of life, especially when collecting vintage automobiles. One of the most popular spin-offs from this hobby is the wide-reaching area of automobilia, or the hobby of collecting items related to cars.

There are hundreds of sub-venues, including motorsports where one may fancy a particular driver, team leader, or a specific marque, with specialists cutting down to individual models. Other areas deal with literature which can range from sales brochures to operating manuals, or maybe the wonderful world of books.

For those who appreciate the fine arts, original paintings, prints, sculptures or even posters can not only decorate an office or garage, but also can appreciate in value if well maintained. For others, the most popular items fall under the category of objects which can include toy or model cars, in various sizes and in varying degrees of detailing, motor-club and event badges, or watches, pens, fobs, hood ornaments or other related items produced for promoting and advertising specific brands or models.

A leader in this industry for over 30 years, l’art et l’automobile Gallery is located on a ranch in the Hill Country of Texas near the community of Harper. Founded by Jacques Vaucher, an admitted incurable collector, this little oasis of automobilia has become famous around the world for the incredible selection of items that have been offered to customers in direct sales or through a series of auctions where just about anything can be found.

A new facet to l’art et l’automobile has been added with what is believed to be the first blog-site dedicated to collectors, and to take part in this forum is done at no cost to those taking part. Launched in January 2009, www.arteautoblog.com you never know what you will be reading about as contributors have ranged from artists to collectors to other dealers.

"We thought it would be a good way to bring people to our regular website," Vaucher said, "but what we are finding is that people who are collectors of specific items and hoping to maybe find their desired treasure or teach people about their interests have been flocking to our blog."

While the gallery is open by appointment, it is still conducting daily sales through its website and with it semi-annual major catalog auctions plus a number of mini-on-line auctions, the blog is becoming a major part of the company. They are also displaying their collectibles at Vintage Car Auctions, historic races, and Concours d'elegance.

"I see what people are talking about," Vaucher said, "and it gives me an appreciation of what they likes plus lets me know what to keep my eyes open for so we can offer the best to those who come to l’art et l'automobile on a regular basis."

Vaucher invites all interested collectors to visit his blog, and if they wish to contribute, all that is required is to join up, a simple and plain on-line registration form, the cost of joining is free. Suggestions and articles are welcomed.

Automobilia Auction at www.arteautoauction.com

2008-12-13T17:57:00.000-06:00

For more than 100 years, the automobile has held a place in our hearts. Since the days of Karl Benz and his invention of the first internal combustion engine, we have since pursued automotive bliss. Artists have been mesmerized by the curves and lines that make an automobile look like drivable artwork. Writers have been captivated by this subject resulting in thousands of books being written over the decades. Model builders have been fascinated by recreating intricate miniatures of those great moving sculptures. Famous sculptors have been hired to create hood ornaments to identify manufacturers, professions, or even certain individuals. Several artists were commissioned by manufacturers to capture their vehicles and catch the attention of the average person walking down the street. The result was captivating posters that reflected the times. Many original posters have not survived the years, but the ones that have are now a great investment. Over the last 30 years, collectibles have grown extensively, and have become a wise venture by thousands all over the world. Various collectibles have always proven to be great investments. Otherwise, auction houses wouldn’t exist to serve collectors of vintage cars and everything surrounding them.

When I began collecting automobilia over 30 years ago, it was because I fell in love with automobiles many years before, and spent my life absorbing everything I could about the subject. It wasn’t long before I went from admiring the cars in the garage to also admiring them on the wall. Over the years, I have gotten to know many talented artists, and have been lucky to share their artwork with the world. I began doing auctions, and I saw the interest grow over the years in many others. Now, automobile and memorabilia auctions are national events. We’ve been privelaged to travel the country attending major international Concours d’Elegance, vintage car auctions, as well as major modern and vintage racing events to share in the excitement with other collectors and enthusiasts. Whether it’s in Hershey, Pebble Beach, Retromobile, or right here on the internet at www.arteautoauction.com, you’ll always find us here offering you timeless gifts and collectibles for yourself or the enthusiast in your life.

Our current auction ends next Wednesday, December 17th, and we’re featuring 448 lots of memorabilia from major modern racing events and vintage cars. We have everything ranging from books, literature, posters, paintings, all the way to badges, models, sculptures, trophies and an actual car, that was a former racing vehicle in Argentina. It’s a 1937/38 Chevrolet Master Deluxe Racing Coupe similar to Fangio’s vehicle, and almost positively competed in some of the same events. You can see in the photo on the right, it’s a truly classic vehicle. And now, you have the chance to be the next owner of this vehicle. Simply go to www.arteautoauction.com, and if you have any questions or would like to bid by speaking with us, you can always contact us here in the gallery, at 830.864.5040, or email info@arteauto.com.

Arie Luyendyk--World Class racer, fellow collector and enthusiast

2008-12-10T20:09:00.000-06:00

The only driver to win the Indianapolis 500 in both the CART and IRL eras, and holder of most of the major Indianapolis speed records, Dutch driver Arie Luyendyk claimed his first CART win in the 1990 Indianapolis 500 in a stunning upset before becoming one of the most respectable all-around drivers in the United States in the 1990s. Luyendyk initially sought a Formula One career, winning the Dutch Formula Ford title in 1973, the European Formula Ford title in 1975, and the European Super Vee championships in 1977, before eventually switching to race in the U.S. Super Vee series, which he won in 1984. The following year, in 1985, he switched to the CART Series, where he drove for Bettenhausen Racing and he was named both Indy 500 and CART Rookie of the Year for that season. After a very similar season in 1986, he moved to Ron Hemelgarn's team for 1987, where he had one of the best seasons for the team in CART, scoring a podium and four 4th place finishes. Showing great promise he finished seventh in points ahead of Danny Sullivan and Emerson Fittipaldi. In 1988, he moved to Dick Simon's team, where he dominated at Portland, starting and finishing second, and led a good portion at Phoenix. In 1989, he stayed with the Simon team and scored points in eleven of the fifteen races despite questionable equipment, scoring a podium at Portland. In 1990, Luyendyk had his first shot at a potentially winning ride with Doug Shierson Racing, where Sullivan and Al Unser, Jr. had previously won races, and after a couple of decent races to start the season, he qualified third at Indianapolis and claimed his surprise triumph taking the lead from Bobby Rahal on lap 168 and winning by nearly eleven seconds. The race would go down in history as the fastest Indianapolis 500 ever, as he won with a record average speed of 185.981 mph. After a retirement at Milwaukee, he would not finish lower than sixth for the next five races. His excellent first half of the season placed him eighth in the standings, behind the seven major superstars in the series at the time (Mario and Michael Andretti, Fittipaldi, R. Mears, Rahal, Sullivan, and Unser Jr.), but ahead of everybody else. He and Teo Fabi were in fact the only drivers to lead that season besides the aforementioned seven, proving what a stranglehold the top teams and drivers held over this era. The Shierson team shut down after the 1990 season, as Shierson elected to retire as a car owner after winning Indianapolis. Luyendyk's team was sold to Vince Granatelli for the 1991 season.

1991 would be Luyendyk's finest season, as he scored a dominant win at Phoenix, and a win at Nazareth after a late-race pass of Michael Andretti. He also scored podiums at Indianapolis, Detroit, and Michigan. Along with several other points-scoring races, he finished sixth in the CART points, two points ahead of Mario Andretti and well ahead of Danny Sullivan, and he led more laps than Rahal and Fittipaldi, clearly establishing himself as a real contender with the greatest drivers in CART. Amazingly, Luyendyk was not able to find a full-time season ride for 1992, only running Indianapolis and Michigan in a second Chip Ganassi car as a teammate to Eddie Cheever. He retired from both races, but impressed Ganassi enough to name him as his replacement for 1993. Luyendyk scored his best performances at the highest-profile races, winning his first pole at Indianapolis, where he finished second after he followed Fittipaldi past defending Formula One champion Nigel Mansell, who made an error on a restart due to his inexperience in oval racing, and started and finished third for the team. He scored another podium in the season finale at Laguna Seca, leaving him a decent eighth, but not beating Cheever's results by very much. Ganassi would hire Michael Andretti, returning to CART from a failed attempt at F1, for 1994, and Luyendyk was forced to move to Indy Regency Racing, where he did manage to finish second (after starting 26th) at Michigan in a race that had heavy attrition.

Despite his focus on road courses early in his career, Luyendyk moved to the all-oval IRL from its inception in 1996, where he joined the little-known Treadway Racing team. He was by far the biggest name in the IRL when the series started and the only Indianapolis winner to compete regularly in the series. The IRL badly needed drivers and Luyendyk would always be assured of a ride there, which may be why he made that decision. He won the second IRL race ever held at Phoenix from the pole, and he won in dominant fashion. However, he retired from the other two races and was not in contention for the (very short) season championship. He set the fastest qualifying speed at Indianapolis in 1996 with a four-lap average of 236.986 mph, but did not win the pole as it came in a later qualifying session, as his car was ruled underweight in the initial qualifying session. In 1997, Luyendyk returned to prominence in a big way. Although he started with three DNFs in his first four races, he won his second pole position at Indianapolis in 1997, and made a late-race pass on Scott Goodyear to win. That race came under some controversy as a green flag came out ending a caution period with one lap remaining, and the green flag was thrown but the caution lights were still yellow. Goodyear was confused and slowed down while Luyendyk got a huge jump on the restart to win. The following week at Texas, there was even greater controversy, as there were a series of electronic scoring glitches and certain laps were not counted for certain drivers. A.J. Foyt's driver Billy Boat was ruled as the winner, but Luyendyk felt he had won, entered victory lane, and challenged Texas Motor Speedway's Eddie Gossage about the officiating. Foyt then pushed Luyendyk into some tulips, while Luyendyk still challenged the official race result. Ultimately, after an observation of the tape, it was ruled that Luyendyk had in fact won the race, but the whole charade did provide some mainstream attention for the IRL. Those two wins would be Luyendyk's only two wins of the season, but he was the only driver to win multiple races that season, as all the IRL teams in 1997 had wildly inconsistent seasons.

Arie Luyendyk has been a friend to arteauto.com for many years now, and he has graciously allowed us access to many items from his personal collection, including the helmet from his 1993 Indy 500 race, in which he took 2^nd Place behind Fittipaldi. We are also featuring several of his ID cards and passes with lanyards from various races and tracks, as well as Racing Suits from his friends, including Didier Theys, Danny Sullivan, Paul Tracy, Jacques Villeneuve, and Stefan Johansson. We also have the autographed gloves worn by Luyendyk in his 3^rd Place finish at Indy in 1991, behind R. Mears and M. Andretti.

The Walter M. Murphy Coach Coachbuilder/Sales Plates

2008-11-12T13:17:00.000-06:00

Pasadena, California’s Walter M. Murphy Company is primarily remembered today for their magnificent creations on the Duesenberg chassis.

Records indicate that Murphy built 125 Duesenberg bodies - about 25% of all the Model J's, JN's, SJ's and SSJ's produced - and as a very high proportion of the automaker’s cars still exist, so do a large proportion of Murphy’s coachwork.

Murphy is known to have built on Bentley, Bugatti, Buick, Cadillac, Cord, Crane-Simplex, Doble, Dorris, Duesenberg, Essex, Ford, Hispano-Suiza, Hudson, Isotta- Fraschini, Lincoln, Locomobile, Marmon, Mercedes-Benz, Mercer, Minerva, Packard, Peerless, Pierce-Arrow, Rolls-Royce, and Simplex chassis.

Although it was formed in 1920, the firm’s roots go back another 20 years to two of Detroit’s early automotive pioneers, Henry M. Leland and Henry Ford.

The Walter M. Murphy sold-badge on the right hand side is just one of many memorabilia badges that is offered for sale at www.arteauto.com along with an old RAC Badge from the UK. The picture on the right hand side is two Murphy Coach coachbuilder/sales plates which went on each chassis which was sold by the company.

Also on the right hand side is a picture of a collection of 54 British Auto and Motorcycle Club Badges which has a rich and noble history in car memorabilia.

There is a rich history behind most automobile memorabilia badges. Just look it up on the internet for an affluent history of car badges.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Jacques Vaucher was schooled at Winfield France's famous racing school. Jacques found his niche in touring car endurance championships in the US and produced winning results in Limerock and Watkins Glen. He has been in automobile memorabilia for 30 years with galleries in New York and now Harper, Texas. His main site is http://www.arteauto.com/ and his auction site is http://www.arteautoauction.com. His blog is http://www.arteautoblog.com/.
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Driver Race Suit Memorabilia

2008-11-10T12:29:00.000-06:00

The Indianapolis 500 has become extremely trendy in society today. The 93rd Indianapolis 500 started on May 24th of this year. This event has become one of the many ways in which major corporations advertise. From this sport has grown driver race car suit collections.

One of the trends in the Indy 500 memorabilia is the collection of drivers’ race suits. If a car collector finds one, he will surely buy it. This allows the link to a time in which we fondly remember about a particular event in racing history.

Authentic racing suits are highly prized by car enthusiasts and race fans. Most drivers have about a dozen different racing uniforms. Most end up in car museums, auctioned for charities and given to primary sponsors as gifts.

Take the racing uniform of Danny Sullivan who won the 1985 Indy 500. His 1983 racing suit goes for approximately $1,900.00 if you can find it. Arteauto.com seems to be the only place to find it.

Or, don’t forget Didier Theys. He raced in the 1987-1993 seasons with 47 career starts, including the 1989, 1990 and 1993 Indianapolis 500. His suit sells for $950.00 which is also found at arteauto.com.

Racing suits of Jacques Villeneuve of 1985, Paul Tracy of 1995 and Stefan Johansson of 1995 all have intrinsic values ranging from $1,200.00 - $1,450.00 (www.arteauto.com)

So, step up to collecting racing suits and share them with friends and family and other of your sport racing friends.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Jacques Vaucher was schooled at Winfield France's famous racing school. Jacques found his niche in touring car endurance championships in the US and produced winning results in Limerock and Watkins Glen. He has been in automobile memorabilia for 30 years with galleries in New York and now Harper, Texas. His main site is http://www.arteauto.com/ and his auction site is http://www.arteautoauction.com/. His blog is http://www.arteautoblog.com/.
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1959 Cadillac Car Couch: http://www.vintagevending.com/

2008-11-07T13:18:00.000-06:00

I found this great article about the restoration of a 1959 Cadillac Car Couch and thought I would share it here. For pictures go the site from the URL in the title.

We restored hundreds and hundreds of items over the years—but only one car couch. Car couches are typically made by cutting off the back quarter of a very distinct collectible car. The secret, however, is that it usually comes from the less collectible four-door model of that car or one that has severe front-end damage.

What makes this 1959 Cadillac couch different from most car couches is that it was done in reverse. When car couches are made, the seat is usually placed inside where the trunk formerly was. But the customer who commissioned this piece wanted it done differently, making the restoration a bit of a challenge. The couch was to go in their basement recreation room, so they wanted to be able to see the tail light fins when you walked down the stairs, but have the seating facing away. It would be freestanding in the middle of the room. This would be the opposite of most car couches you see that are made to go against a wall.

This was a pretty involved project with lots of welding, fabrication, bodywork, paint, upholstery & chroming. We have included a few pictures of the process in addition to the finished piece. Also check out the two hassocks we made to compliment the piece. This is definitely one item I would love to still own.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Jacques Vaucher was schooled at Winfield France's famous racing school. Jacques found his niche in touring car endurance championships in the US and produced winning results in Limerock and Watkins Glen. He has been in automobile memorabilia for 30 years with galleries in New York and now Harper, Texas. His main site is http://www.arteauto.com/ and his auction site is http://www.arteautoauction.com. His blog is http://www.arteautoblog.com/.
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TEXAS 1000 TO STOP IN HARPER, TEXAS

2008-11-06T12:31:00.001-06:00

On Tuesday, November 11, 2008 the Texas 1000, a yearly event with entrants from around the U.S. and around the world driving 30+ sports & exotic cars such as vintage Ferrari, Porche, Maserati, Alfa Romeo, Triumph and Sting Ray will make their lunch stop in Harper on their 5 day tour through the Hill Country.

Their lunch will take place at “l’art et l’automobile”, a gallery and auction house whose owner, Jacques Vaucher relocated from New York in the summer of 2006. A 4000 sq foot barn full of transportation memorabilia such as books, artwork, trophies, badges, sculpture etc. will be transformed into a café/gallery.

The lunch will be catered by his wife Karen Vaucher, a veteran of the restaurant business in NYC and East Hampton, NY. Lunch will feature 2 main courses: Braised Thai Chicken & Penne Pasta with Vine Ripened Tomatoes Concasse, Fresh Herbs and Grilled Salmon with Mediterranean Seasonings, Chardonnay Smoked Sea Salt and Grated Pecorino Cheese. A Spring Mix Salad with dried Cranberries and Texas Pecans and a Dessert Table will also be featured.

l’art et l’automobile is open by appointment to the public by calling 830- 864-5040 or by visiting its website: arteauto.com

Old Stone Market specializes in Elegant Gourmet Dinners catered in your home by calling Karen Vaucher at 830-864-5060 or on her cell 631 377-0878. Website for gourmet products including Black Peppercorns from Madagascar is oldstonemarket.com.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Jacques Vaucher was schooled at Winfield France's famous racing school. Jacques found his niche in touring car endurance championships in the US and produced winning results in Limerock and Watkins Glen. He has been in automobile memorabilia for 30 years with galleries in New York and now Harper, Texas. His main site is http://www.arteauto.com/ and his auction site is http://www.arteautoauction.com. His blog is http://www.arteautoblog.com/.
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The Indy 500 Memorabilia Convention

2008-11-06T07:33:00.001-06:00

As you may or may not recall, over 30 years ago, a tiny group of racing collectible enthusiasts just had their 30th anniversary in May of this year. This group is called the National Auto Racing Memorabilia Show which has gone through a progressive advancement in those 30 years.

The year was 1979 and the place was at Howard Johnson’s Motel on Washington Street of downtown Indianapolis. This is where the Indy 500 Memorabilia Convention began. Now the happening is shown at the Indiana State Fairgrounds.

The Indy 500 Memorabilia Convention is now the second-oldest automobile memorabilia conference in the country. The convention is infamous in that each year hundreds and thousands of auto racing enthusiasts descend on this convention to buy, sell and trade automobile memorabilia in which you cannot find anywhere else In the market. The NARM Show (National Auto Racing Memorabilia) of the Indy 500 Memorabilia Convention offers the best place to find crew used uniforms, one-of-a-kind hood ornaments and cars which go back to the early 1920’s.

There are things that you see and items that are for sale here that you just can’t find anywhere else in town. At one booth you might find yourself looking through IndyCar crew-used shirts; at the next booth you are thumbing through candid photos of the drivers you followed in the 60s or 70s; and at the next one you’re debating whether or not to spend the money on one of the only two pit badges you need to complete your collection. You’ll find a guy who has just put the video of the ’68 Race, complete with amateur 8mm shots of fans coming in to the track posing for the camera in their race day finest, on to a DVD. At another stop you find a vendor who recently purchased the negatives from a UPI photographer who shot Watkins Glen in the 60s and has a multitude of prints featuring Graham Hill, Jimmy Clark and Mario. This is not a NASCAR diecast get-together.

If you’ve been coming to this shindig for as long as I have you know most of the exhibitors and about half of the other people in the hall. I run in to a good amount of folks I’ve known for what seems to be half of my life. From time-to-time it’s also afforded me an outlet to sell or trade duplicate items from my collection. Nobody comes to this Show and leaves in thirty minutes. Many come back to the show for a second day.

There is more to come tomorrow of this great event.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Jacques Vaucher was schooled at Winfield France's famous racing school. Jacques found his niche in touring car endurance championships in the US and produced winning results in Limerock and Watkins Glen. He has been in automobile memorabilia for 30 years with galleries in New York and now Harper, Texas. His main site is http://www.arteauto.com/ and his auction site is http://www.arteautoauction.com. His blog is http://www.arteautoblog.com/.
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Automobile Memorabilia – The Collector’s Dream

2008-11-05T07:35:00.001-06:00

Be sure to keep your feelers out for all those great license plates and other collectible automobile objects. There is no group larger than the sports car enthusiast with the exclusion of collectors of sport items.

My friend Richard has been speaking on this issue for years and has made a great deal of money off of automobile memorabilia. Websites such as WomenWithWheels.com are proof positive of the impact of automobile memorabilia. Items collected by car buffs are boundless.

Look at cover hood ornaments alone. Many of these sell for hundreds of dollars. Taking a quick look at Ebay, you see ornaments selling as much as $2,000.00 or more. There is incredible opportunity for those who seek wealth in car memorabilia.

What are some of the things for which to seek and buy when you catch the bug of automobile memorabilia? That is a harder question to answer since there are unlimited car memorabilia items in this world.

Sculptures, mascots, models and toys of automobile memorabilia are just some of the items of which to find and buy. Decals, badges, hood ornaments sell for hundreds of dollars per item depending on the year, make and model of the car from which they came.

Prints of various automobiles are also selling at unbelievable prices. They sell from as little as $200.00 up to tens of thousands of dollars.

I have loved cars since my teenage years when I saw my first supercharged porches. Join our blog and learn to become a car enthusiast who learns how to search for the treasures of the automobile memorabilia world.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Jacques Vaucher was schooled at Winfield France's famous racing school. Jacques found his niche in touring car endurance championships in the US and produced winning results in Limerock and Watkins Glen. He has been in automobile memorabilia for 30 years with galleries in New York and now Harper, Texas. His main site is http://www.arteauto.com/ and his auction site is http://www.arteautoauction.com. His blog is http://www.arteautoblog.com/.
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Actor Steve McQueen Automobile Memorabilia Auction was a Success

2008-11-04T09:08:00.000-06:00

Actor Steve McQueen’s automobile memorabilia was up for bidding on October 25th and a complete success. His racing trophy sold for $125,000.00 and his wife Neile McQueen (Neile Adams) sold several of his guns which brought a heaping number of dollars ($200,000.00). As you recall Steve McQueen died from mesothelioma in Mexico in 1980.

The range of the auction was from $500.00 to hundreds of thousands of dollars. On sale was a 1958 GMC pickup truck, 1929 Harley Davidson Model B, and 1920 Indian Powerplus ‘Daytona’ Racing Motorcycle. These brought in a whopping $1,000,000.00 dollars.

Included in the Bonham’s and Butterfield’s auction in Los Angeles, California was a pair of chaps from "Tom Horn", western saddle by Jack Grigsby, Wells Fargo Bank Master Charge credit card, mailgram regarding John Wayne, Wurlitzer jukebox and Coca-Cola advertising standee. These sold for over $500,000.00 dollars.

The 130 motorcycles and 35 cars that were auctioned brought in a total of $6.5 million dollars. Automobile memorabilia does pay off for you collectors and car enthusiasts.

There were a lot more big ticket items: McQueen's 1879 .44-caliber Winchester rifle, one of 18 guns for sale, went for a cool $20,000 (estimate $2500); a personalized Idaho license plate—MCQ3188, the number referring to his ID number at the Boys Republic reform school—was a shocker at $4500 (estimate $100); and his circa 1920 Indian Powerplus board-tracker (lead photo) brought $130,000 (estimate $60-90,000).

Too rich for ya? Then how about a T-shirt “heavily worn and faded with holes and rips throughout” for $3250? Or maybe one of the man's baseball caps, old and crumbling, for $2500? If McQueen sweat in it, it was worth money.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Jacques Vaucher was schooled at Winfield France's famous racing school. Jacques found his niche in touring car endurance championships in the US and produced winning results in Limerock and Watkins Glen. He has been in automobile memorabilia for 30 years with galleries in New York and now Harper, Texas. His main site is http://www.arteauto.com/ and his auction site is http://www.arteautoauction.com/. His blog is http://www.arteautoblog.com/.
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