George Ham (Born in 1900) was born in Laval, Mayenne, France. He’s regarded as one of the finest automotive artists in the world. He left behind a legacy of paintings and posters that will immortalize him forever, though he had no descendants to carry on the family name. His work is noted for its painstaking reality and technical accuracy. A part time racing driver and an automotive enthusiast, he duplicated the precise position of every component of the automobile. In most cases he exaggerated details to create a sense of movement. Along with gouache and watercolor paintings, the artist sketched many caricatures in which he depicted the personality of the drivers and their automobiles. Ham was commissioned by Benjamin to illustrate its catalogue early in his career. Benjamin was a French cycle-car manufacturer.
From 1927 to 1940, his work was featured in L’illustration, the leading pictorial magazine in France. From the 1930’s through to the 50’s, Ham’s work was spread out in the posters which he created for the Grand Prix of Monaco. In addition, Ham recounted the history of Le Mans in a series of watercolors for a limited-edition book by Roger Labric. Many of his original paintings are on display in the offices of the Automobile Club de l’Ouest and in many other offices in France. In 1931, he was appointed as an Official Peintre de l'Air. He died in 1972 and is remembered for his illustrations of automobiles or airplanes which appeared in L'Illustration. His art has been published widely in some of the leading magazines.
