Object Timeline

1950

  • Work on this object began.

2017

2018

2024

  • You found it!

Drawing, Concept Car

This is a Drawing. It was designed by Don Butler. It is dated 1950 and we acquired it in 2017. Its medium is brush and gouache on paper. It is a part of the Drawings, Prints, and Graphic Design department.

In this striking drawing, Don Butler presents three views of a concept car. The center of the composition is dominated by the most complete rendering of the car, in pea-soup green and labeled Debonair, while in the top left and bottom right corners he provides the outlines for two details. He uses shadows and highlights to emphasize the form of the vehicle, depicting the car as if it is lit from above and presented on a stage. At the top left, Butler depicts a miniature view of the front of the car, illustrating the movement of the hood. At the bottom right, Butler outlines the sloping contours of the windows. This drawing is intended as a presentation piece but the inclusion of specific details indicates Butler's practical approach to design.

It is credited Museum purchase through gift of Paul Herzan and from General Acquisitions Endowment Fund.

Its dimensions are

40.6 × 54.6 cm (16 in. × 21 1/2 in.)

It is signed

Signed in brush and blue gouache, lower left: DON BUTLER / 4-25-50

It is inscribed

Inscribed in brush and gouache, on automobile body: Debonair

Cite this object as

Drawing, Concept Car; Designed by Don Butler (American, active mid-20th century); brush and gouache on paper; 40.6 × 54.6 cm (16 in. × 21 1/2 in.); Museum purchase through gift of Paul Herzan and from General Acquisitions Endowment Fund; 2017-18-10

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If you would like to cite this object in a Wikipedia article please use the following template:

<ref name=CH>{{cite web |url=https://collection.cooperhewitt.org/objects/1108798005/ |title=Drawing, Concept Car |author=Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum |accessdate=23 April 2024 |publisher=Smithsonian Institution}}</ref>