UK-based sculptor Robin Bark has created a limited-edition sculpture in commemoration of the Mustang’s 50th anniversary. Only 500 solid aluminum pieces will be produced, each cast and polished, numbered, and signed by the artist.
“I think I was drawing cars the moment I was born,” says Bark. “Growing up in South Africa, I wanted to design cars, but there wasn’t much call for it, so I switched from industrial design to graphics, which took me into advertising for a time.”
Bark started with an extensive series of Mustang photos of the car, which he then translated into rough engineering drawings. The Mustang was a unique challenge for Bark because this was his first rendering of an American car. “Mustang is a very different shape from the earlier cars I had done, which were more classically streamlined. I look for what the designers were trying to achieve with shapes, and try to capture the essence of the car while also imparting a sense of motion to a static object.”
Once finished, Bark’s resin model was sent to a specialist casting pattern maker. Raw aluminum castings are produced in batches of 10 at a time. Ironically, the foundry specializes in small batch production of unique castings including reproduction parts for vintage race cars.
“From the shark-bite nose to the long, sweeping line of the fastback roof to the tri-bar taillamps, Mustang has a quintessential profile that makes it easily recognizable to everyone on the road,” said Ford vice president, global design Moray Callum. “Robin Bark has captured the essential nature of one of the greatest Mustangs in his sculpture, creating an object of art that appears to be fluid motion.”
Each casting is polished to a finished piece that is signed and numbered by the artist and placed in a commemorative wood box. No more than 500 of the 1965 Mustang fastback sculptures will be produced. The limited-edition sculptures are available through robinbark-motorart.com.
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