JULIAN OPIE, IMAGINE YOU ARE DRIVING (FAST)/RIO, IMAGINE YOU ARE DRIVING (FAST) SERIES, SIGNED DIGITAL PRINT, EDITION OF 50, 2002
Julian Opie’s Imagine You Are Driving (Fast)/Rio is from a series of prints from 2002 called Imagine You Are Driving (Fast). This series of prints invites the viewer into a simulated world of Formula 1 driving, rendered in Opie’s bold, linear style that works to create a depersonalised image. On the left hand side of the composition Opie depicts an empty expanse of tarmac disappearing into the distance and devoid of all human presence. The right hand side of the print shows a portrait of a famous Honda F1 driver, indicating who’s view of the road we are seeing.
Opie was commissioned to create this series by Artwise to devise an exciting and original way of showcasing the Honda F1 team to engage audiences beyond the racetrack. Originally displayed as a 60-metre-long installation, Opie was selected to be part of this project due to his ongoing obsession with movement and car culture as subject matter.
Through his ‘depersonalised’ visual language, Opie’s Imagine You Are Driving (Fast) is compelling in its depiction of movement and dynamism through the use of static images that are highly simplified. In juxtaposing the portrait with the Grand Prix track, the viewer is invited to take on the perspective of the sitter and imagine a journey of their own.
Read more about Imagine You Are Driving (Fast) by Julian Opie.
ABOUT JULIAN OPIE
British artist Julian Opie challenges traditional approaches to portraiture through his digitally designed and seemingly contradictory, depersonalised works. Working also with landscapes and cityscapes, Opie’s highly stylised work involves the reduction of photographs or short films into figurative reproductions created using computer software. The hallmarks of his artistic style are portraits and animated walking figures, rendered with minimal detail in black line drawing. Learn more about Julian Opie.
