ROBERT T.DEVLIN
Pebble Beach , Calif. (July 28, 2003) Dalton Watson Fine Books, a specialist automotive book publisher, announces the forthcoming publication of a new book, Pebble Beach Concours dElegance: The Art of the Poster, which will be launched at the Automotive Fine Arts Society (AFAS) Exhibition on the lawn of The Lodge at Pebble Beach on Saturday, August 16, 2003. Partly funded by Ford Motor Company, and supported by the Blackhawk Collection, the book will be given later to all Concours car entrants on Sunday, August 17, 2003. It will also be available for purchase from the publisher at the Concours and at www.daltonwatson.com.
The Book
This lush and vivid work introduces and beautifully reproduces all of the posters created over the years for the Pebble Beach Concours dElegance.
First held in 1950, the Pebble Beach Concours dElegance is now widely regarded as the premier event for collector car enthusiasts. Each year, this event draws the automotive elite to one of the most scenic spots on earth to see the worlds most prized collector carscars that blend function and form, technology and style.
From the start, posters have been created to promote the Concours, and over time, these posters have moved from promotional sheets to cherished mementos to treasured works of art.
Created by several prominent artists, these posters not only document the history of the Pebble Beach Concours, they dramatically depict the importance of the automobile in our society and in our lives. The automobile does more than transport us around the block-it is part and parcel of our history on a daily basis. It embodies both our memories and our dreams.
Each Concours poster tells a singular automotive tale. It presents the techniques, the style, and the automotive vision of one artist. Some posters explore the lines and curves that signify classic automotive elegance, some pay homage to particular cars and marques, and some are paeans to the automobile in motion. One poster depicts the pleasures of a Sunday drive along the boulevards of Paris in the late 19th century when the automobile was a creation that turned the heads of passersby. Another depicts the rush felt guiding a racecar at speed through the intricate twists and turns of an early road race.
The accompanying text introduces the artists and discusses their work, detailing the history of the Pebble Beach Concours dElegance and the rise of both poster and automotive art.
In addition, the book includes the posters created for the Pebble Beach Tour dElegance, a driving event for Pebble Beach Concours entrants that began in 1998 and is now a regular part of the pre-Concours festivities.
The Authors
Robert T. Devlin is an automotive historian with a particular passion for the Pebble Beach Concours dElegance. He first attended the event as a teenager back in 1952, just two years after it started, and he has been among its most faithful participants in the ensuing five decades. Throughout much of the past two decades he has served the event as a Class Judge. In 1980, he wrote and published Pebble Beach , A Matter of Style detailing the Concours early history. He has also written over 90 articles about automobiles for various magazines and other publications.
An ardent automobile enthusiast, Robert Devlin is a very active member of the Ferrari Club of America, having held several national positions with that organization and serving regularly as a judge at both regional and national events.
Kandace Hawkinson is a writer and editor who has served as a publishing consultant to the Pebble Beach Concours dElegance for the past five years. She previously edited Pebble Beach Concours dElegance: Celebrating Fifty Years of Automotive Style. that was published in 2000
