NASCAR Artist ‘Has Designs’ on 2004 Daytona 500 Entries:
February 10, 2004 at 12:00 AM
Sam Bass, the most prolific artist in NASCAR, owner of Sam Bass Illustration & Design, Inc., designed the graphic schemes of the Nextel Cup Series race cars driven by #24-Jeff Gordon, #48-Jimmie Johnson, #29-Kevin Harvick, #31-Robbie Gordon, #5-Terry Labonte, #40-Sterling Marlin and the #45-Georgia-Pacific and #43-General Mills-sponsored cars of Petty Enterprises. As the first artist officially licensed by NASCAR, Bass has led the industry for more than 15 years and continues to set the pace in the NEXTEL Cup, Busch and Craftsman Truck NASCAR Series. Bass said that creating a successful race car design is a challenge that stretches the artist further than the simple task of applying colors to sheet metal. “Large companies spend billions of dollars over time to establish their products and brands in their customers’ minds,” said Bass. “And for many NASCAR sponsors, the race car is the most visible public extension of their brands. This puts the pressure on me to design a look for the race car that resonates with its customers. It must adapt well to the team uniforms and equipment. It should also present a consistent brand image on packaging and merchandising. And most importantly, it has to look good on TV. It’s quite a challenge,” he said. “The idea is to create a race-car design so rooted in the brand that you could strip the words off the car, yet the brand and the sponsor would still be unmistakable,” said Bass. Bass, 42, is the most highly accomplished artist in the NASCAR industry. Since 1987, the Hopewell, Va., native has created more than 300 race car and team graphic designs for leading corporate clients, NASCAR team owners and drivers. He also creates fine-art paintings, posters, merchandise, apparel, souvenir program covers and packaging, plus guitar designs. His 10,000-square-foot studio, gallery and showroom is located adjacent to Lowe’s Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C., in the greater Charlotte area. The gallery is a popular stop for tourists visiting the area. More information on Bass is available at www.sambass.com. Bass is available for media interviews.(Sam Bass PR)(2-10-2004)
