Rapid advances in automotive technology

The late 1920s and the 1930s were marked by rapid advances in automotive technology. Engine technology, drivetrain technology and aerodynamics changed so dramatically that vehicles were setting speed records one after the other – and so were aeroplanes. Mobile technology conquered long distances, travelling thousands of kilometres over mountains and through valleys for the first time – and flying across continents, seas and oceans. In Grand Prix racing, it was initially Mercedes and Alfa Romeo, later Chenard & Walker, Lorraine Dietrich, Bugatti and Bentley, Aston Martin, Talbot and Lagonda; by the end of this era, Auto Union and Mercedes dominated. Great drivers such as Tazio Nuvolari, Bernd Rosemeyer, Rudolf Caracciola and Jean-Pierre Wimille were among the big names on the scene.

Uli Ehret's interpretation

Uli’s watercolours, with their distinctive style, are perfectly suited to the period and this artistic movement. Uli’s paintings from this era are often not detailed, but rather rough in style and convey a sense of movement. They could well be paintings from that period, when watercolours were often used to make the magazines of the ‘Roaring Thirties’ more appealing with illustrations or adverts. The vehicles, painted in national colours, bear no advertising or lettering whatsoever – and can therefore, thanks to Uli’s painting style, be ‘brought to life’ more easily than today’s vehicles.

The whole collection

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