“Collecting” can mean a lot of things when it comes to car-related artwork. It could be a 12-year-old boy with two Ferrari posters on his wall or a multi-millionaire with a warehouse full of Grand Prix posters and hood ornaments – passion is passion. Auto art can be had at any price point. It also doesn’t take up much room, nor does it require any real upkeep the way a real car does. If you have limited space, you can even switch up what you’re displaying at any given time. That’s probably what we’d do with this group of period Bertone blueprint drawings, which sold on 7 May through an online auction in Italy for €1415 (£1220).
According to the listing, the 1/10-scale drawings, printed on semi-transparent acetate tracing paper, came from a long-term Bertone employee who kept them in his own collection, before giving them to the seller’s grandfather about 40 years ago. They are each supposedly one of only three prints made from a paper master, and they range in size, with the largest ones roughly 1.2 meters wide.
The group totaled 14 drawings and featured various (mostly Italian) cars and designers. Two of the largest illustrations show the Lamborghini Miura and Lancia Stratos (both by Marcello Gandini at Bertone). Other Bertone-designed pieces included a Citroën GS, a Fiat Dino Coupe, and an Iso Rivolta GT. A Lancia Delta (by Italdesign) and an Alfa Romeo Junior Z (by Ercole Spada) were included as well. Finally, there were two renderings of the short-lived postwar Bugatti 101, both signed by Giovanni Michelotti at Ghia.
Different cars, different designers, different sizes. Sounds like the perfect, affordable way to kickstart an automotive art collection. What’s hanging on your walls?
