Classic Car From Below Black And White | Limited Edition of 10
Four Round Lights Suspended Against Open White Space
Cars are almost always photographed from somewhere around eye level. I had the opposite opportunity here.
I found this old classic car mounted on the roof of a business in Toronto, being used as an oversized ornament. Standing underneath it gave me a view I rarely get with an automobile: the front end hanging above me with virtually nothing behind it. That was the photograph. Not the entire car, not the business, and not even particularly the location. It was this peculiar angle.
Looking upward, the familiar parts of the car begin to behave more like shapes. Two large round headlights sit above another pair of circular lights. Curved chrome cuts diagonally through the frame. The front tire drops toward the bottom edge, while dents, scratches, cracked glass, worn metal, and weathered surfaces interrupt all of that geometry. It is still unmistakably an old automobile, but seen this way it becomes something stranger. That unusual perspective separates it from the more conventional photographs in my classic car wall art collection.
I chose black and white because color was not carrying the photograph. Removing it concentrates everything on form, surface, contrast, and repetition. The circles become stronger. The aged chrome becomes more tactile. Tire tread, damaged metal, headlight glass, and years of wear become part of the structure rather than secondary details.
The large white area is equally important to me. Without a road, building, landscape, or recognizable environment surrounding the vehicle, there is very little to explain what I am looking at. The car seems suspended in space. I deliberately kept that emptiness rather than filling the frame, because it gives the heavy mechanical subject an unexpected sense of weightlessness.
For me, this photograph is less about automotive nostalgia than about discovering a visual arrangement that could only exist because the car was somewhere a car normally would not be.
I can see this black-and-white photograph appealing particularly to collectors of classic automobiles, mechanical subjects, industrial imagery, and unconventional automotive photography. Its restrained palette and large negative space also make it well suited to contemporary interiors where the subject can remain graphic without becoming visually busy.
This photograph is offered as a limited edition of only 10 prints. I personally sign each print, and each includes a certificate of authenticity. The photograph is printed with archival pigment inks on premium archival paper.
For collectors interested in automobiles photographed beyond the usual showroom, street, and garage viewpoints, the image also belongs naturally within my automotive wall art collection.
© Dan Kosmayer, 2011
Limited Edition of 10
This photograph is released as a signed and numbered limited edition of only 10 prints in total across all available sizes combined—not 10 prints in each size.
Every size is drawn from the same edition. Whether the photograph is purchased as a small print or at the largest available size, it uses one of the 10 edition numbers.
I personally sign and number each print on the reverse, and every print is accompanied by a signed Certificate of Authenticity recording its title, dimensions, medium, edition number, and date of issue.
Once all 10 prints have been sold, the edition will be permanently closed. No additional numbered editions of the photograph will be produced in another size or format.
Premium Archival Fine Art Prints
I personally produce every photograph using archival pigment inks on premium archival paper with a subtle luster finish.
The paper provides rich tonal depth, excellent fine-detail reproduction, and a refined surface that reduces distracting glare under normal indoor lighting. It is especially well suited to both color and black-and-white photography.
Each photograph is sold as an unframed fine art print, allowing it to be framed according to the collector’s space and personal style.
Before a print leaves my studio, I carefully inspect it for color, tonal accuracy, surface quality, and overall presentation. Nothing is outsourced, and every finished print passes through my hands.
