Richard ‘Dick’ Ellis (1919-1998) original cutaway illustration on board - pen, paint and laminations. Produced for Autocar Magazine. Measures 52cm x 38cm. Condition: Excellent. Offered framed but available unframed. 

This stunning illustration by British motoring artist Dick Ellis showcases the remarkable skill and precision of technical drawing before the advent of computer aided design. It features a 1980 Austin Mini Metro in full colour (those colours being Snapdragon yellow with Paprika cloth interior, for those interested!). The image has been built up in layers, beginning with an ink drawing followed by paint and use of thin laminate in few places.

There is some handwritten information on the back of the board which tell us it was produced for  11th October 1980 issue (pages 40-41). There is also a sticker for Quadrant Picture Library who held this artwork in their archives.       

The Austin Mini Metro was launched in 1980 intended as a replacement for the iconic Mini and an answer to the VW Polo and Vauxhall Cadette among others. The Mini Metro quickly proved popular with buyers, a 19-year-old Lady Diana Spencer buying one of the early examples, and was regularly seen in it being hounded by the paparazzi just before her marriage to Prince Charles in July 1981. At a starting price of £3,095 the Metro was the best selling supermini car in the UK for fours years in a row (until the Ford Fiesta in 1984) and over 1 million cars were sold in its first 10 years.