More Old Pickups

Old trucks continue to fascinate me. In part it's because of their curvy American classic lines.

The lines of cars and trucks in the 1950s are the

"Green Hornet," digital, 2018

lines of the cars in American Graffiti. They have a certain rounded, plump style. I used to own a 1950 Ford pickup, much like the digital illustration, right. The model was an F-1, but a previous owner had installed a big Chevrolet engine. As an antique it had no seat belts and obviously no airbags. No air conditioning of course, and only a radio for entertainment. The bench seat was bolted to the floor, and the gearshift was a long lever to the transmission, through the floor. I've drawn and painted my old truck several times and posted an image or two in the past. This one is a digital illustration done with Corel Painter 2019, initial sketch to final color version. I'm still learning Painter, so this image can doubtless be improved. Still, the program clearly has much to offer and a wealth of tools to learn. This particular painting of my truck lacks background and setting but those can be dropped in later to make a more satisfying painting.

"Retirees," watercolor, 3.5x7.0, 2018

Speaking of old pickup trucks, earlier this summer I drove by the classic car dealer downtown, where to my delight three pickups from the mid-twentieth century were parked on the lot. I took a few reference shots and then sat under the trees across the street to draw and paint them in my pocket sketchbook. The colors were bright compared to today's bland cars, and I spent time adding the watercolor to my initial careful pencil drawing, simplifying and adjusting as I went, then added pen details here and there. This one is about 3.5x7. I call it "Retirees."

"Roger's Ranchero," digital sketch, 2018

Finally, hot off the Cintiq is this digital sketch of a friend's pickup as I remember it from my high school days. Doubtless I didn't remember it perfectly. This drawing of a 1959 Ford Ranchero was done with Sketchbook.

It occurs to me that although I've done digital and watercolor sketches and countless graphite and ink drawings of trucks I've never done an oil, so maybe one or two might be in order.

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Old Pickup Trucks
A Texaco Star