READING Racing Lines: The Art of Giana Gyr

Racing Lines

Giana Gyr’s paintings deconstruct Formula 1’s iconic moments

CURATED IN COLLABORATION WITH Giana Gyr

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Spain 2016. Lewis Hamilton veers onto the grass to avoid his teammate, Nico Rosberg, eventually losing control with disastrous consequences.

When embarking on the journey to become a professional artist, Giana Gyr gave herself one piece of simple advice: “I told myself to paint the things that interest me. Don't paint the things that people expect.” 

It was this advice that led her to Formula 1 and to her first – and unexpected – ‘viral’ moment as a painter back in 2021. “I just remember these moments kept happening during the 2021 season  — at Monza, Silverstone, Hungary, Baku — and I just wanted to paint the very geometric, abstract interpretations these races inspired in my head.” So, she did just that, starting with Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton’s iconic pile up at Monza during the 2021 title fight. 

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Monza 2021. Max Verstappen's car is launched on top of Lewis Hamilton's Mercedes in the Rettifilo chicane.

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Baku 2021. With only a couple laps to go, there's a full standing restart in Baku. In a rare mistake, Lewis Hamilton runs wide in the first turn as the whole field passes by.

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Abu Dhabi 2021. Lewis Hamilton was comfortably in the lead for the majority of the race, but after an ill-timed yellow flag it came down to his hard tires versus Max Verstappen's new red-striped soft tires.

Six months later, she decided to share her work, with no titles or context, on the three-million-strong Formula 1 subreddit. The reaction on Reddit — a platform not typically known for its hospitality — shocked her. “People were like, ‘I know what that is. That’s Monza.” From there, her audience began to look forward to her posts, excited to see which decisive moments from each race would be represented in her abstract style. 

Gyr's work is meant to be appreciated by both die-hard Formula 1 fans and complete novices alike. Her paintings, which utilize gouache, a thick, opaque paint reminiscent of watercolor with an elegant matte finish, capture the one-of-a-kind spectacle of each Grand Prix.

She draws inspiration from graphic styles far from the traditional realm of Formula 1 art, including early 20th-century modernism, Bauhaus — an abstract, angular and geometric German art style tracing back to the years after the end of World War I — and 1970s graphic design.

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Monza 2021. Max Verstappen's car is launched on top of Lewis Hamilton's Mercedes in the Rettifilo chicane.

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Baku 2021. With only a couple laps to go, there's a full standing restart in Baku. In a rare mistake, Lewis Hamilton runs wide in the first turn as the whole field passes by.

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Abu Dhabi 2021. Lewis Hamilton was comfortably in the lead for the majority of the race, but after an ill-timed yellow flag it came down to his hard tires versus Max Verstappen's new red-striped soft tires.

“The artwork I see out there for the broader umbrella of sport, but specifically for motorsport, oftentimes feels very photorealistic.”

GIANA GYR

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Abu Dhabi 2023. Max Verstappen's car disappears into a cloud of tire smoke as he does some celebratory doughnuts to cap off the 2024 season.

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Abu Dhabi 2023. Max Verstappen's car disappears into a cloud of tire smoke as he does some celebratory doughnuts to cap off the 2024 season.

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Monza 2019. Depicting Charles Leclerc’s iconic win, the goal of this painting is to give the feeling of Leclerc aggressively throwing his car through the chicane and somehow making it stick.

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Monza 2019. Depicting Charles Leclerc’s iconic win, the goal of this painting is to give the feeling of Leclerc aggressively throwing his car through the chicane and somehow making it stick.

Now, three years on from that first viral moment, Gyr has her own studio space in England where she prints and ships her works all across the globe. To Gyr, the studio is a milestone that represents her commitment to continued innovation: “It's a really cool feeling to feel like yourself, like you're in your element, like you're doing the thing that you're supposed to be doing. And, to me, that is what the studio is.” Most recently, Gyr has gotten her hands on a retired Formula 1 tire, which she has begun carving into an improvised printing press. 

It is this love for what she does, commitment to creativity, and acceptance of all perspectives that shines through in each of her pieces. “I have my own personal favorites that I like to keep to myself,” says Gyr. “People love to find meaning in my work and see their own interpretations of things. And I think that's what art is about in general. It's meant to spark conversation and make people think.” 

“There is an immense amount of thought that goes into each of the paintings. You have all of these different tracks and all of these different places...

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Suzuka 1989. Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna battling for the 1989 championship. This piece showcases the angularity of late 80s Formula 1 cars by capturing their distinctive geometric lines and aerodynamic shapes.

...What was the weather like? Was it raining? Was it hot? Was there dust blowing in off the desert? Was it a night race? Was it a city circuit?”

GIANA GYR

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Australia 2024. Max Verstappen, represented by the deep navy blue, trails smoke from his right rear tire as Carlos Sainz overtakes him for the lead.

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Australia 2024. Max Verstappen, represented by the deep navy blue, trails smoke from his right rear tire as Carlos Sainz overtakes him for the lead.

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China 2024. The dreaded concertina effect caught out Lance Stroll who went into Daniel Ricciardo who clipped Oscar Piastri who narrowly avoided Fernando Alonso.

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China 2024. The dreaded concertina effect caught out Lance Stroll who went into Daniel Ricciardo who clipped Oscar Piastri who narrowly avoided Fernando Alonso.

“It's a really cool feeling to feel like yourself,

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Qatar 2023. This painting is an abstraction of the Qatar circuit, shown as repeated circles to represent the constant tire changes throughout the race.

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Australia 2023. Complete chaos on the third start of the day. The Albert Park circuit becomes the most expensive pinball machine in the world.

like you're you're in your element,

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Singapore 2023. Heartbreak for George Russell as he clipped the wall on one of the last corners of the last lap leaving a trail of sparks as he lost out on a podium finish and any finish at all.

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Miami 2023. Formula 1's first time in Miami proved difficult for many drivers, and some of the best wheel to wheel action came from a Ferrari battling with a Haas.

like you're doing the thing that you're supposed to be doing.

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Imola 2024. 2024 is turning out to be very different from 2023 as multiple teams have significantly closed the gap to Red Bull.

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Sao Paulo 2023. Fernando Alonso got his elbows out and managed to hold on to a podium spot in Brazil. This painting is the photo finish between Alonso and Sergio Perez.

And, to me, that is what the studio is.”

GIANA GYR