Auto Art | Grant Thomas

Auto Art

Grant Thomas

Exotic sights

Story: Lesley Wimbush / Illustrations: Grant Thomas

Ask any Canadian Ferrari, DeLorean or equally exotic car owner who their favourite artist is, and chances are they’ll say Grant Thomas. Camera over his shoulder, sketchbook in hand, Thomas is a familiar sight at the annual Yorkville Cars and Coffee, Ferrari Club meets, and wherever such fine exotic automobiles gather.

An honours graduate from Oakville’s Sheridan College, Thomas has made a career in advertising design and his work has appeared in hundreds of print ads across Canada. “I feel fortunate to have a job that I can use my talents and I enjoy so much,” Thomas said, recalling a high school teacher who advised him to “draw what you love” – his true passion lies in depicting beautiful cars.

Thomas’s favourite medium is watercolour, which he praises for its transparency and versatility.

Usually beginning with an ink or graphic drawing, Thomas uses a variety of techniques to create many different effects: “the spattering in a racing scene, the depth and sparkle of a Rossa Corsa paint job” or a “highly detailed rendering of a 308 Ferrari in Yorkville”.

While Ferrari remains Thomas’s favourite subject, he says the DeLorean DMC-12 “runs a close second”.

One of his most memorable experiences was riding down Toronto’s Yonge Street in an (Irish-built) DMC- 12 during the St. Patrick’s Day parade, doors aloft, listening to the cheering crowds.

The Toronto-based painter has completed numerous commissions, from the blue and white Cobra featured at Carroll Shelby’s induction into the Canadian Motorsports Hall of Fame to a 1969 L88 Corvette.

Grant Thomas can be reached at: gthomasf1@netscape.net

Or through his Facebook portfolio page: https://www.facebook.com/GrantThomasArtStudio.

“the spattering in a racing scene, the depth and sparkle of a Rossa Corsa paint job”