In the pantheon of PistonHeads giveaways this may yet stack up as one of the oddest but, let’s face it, who else do you know with a limited-edition artist-signed print of a Lewis Hamilton portrait made from used F1 motor oil?
Yep, what you see here is a picture of Lewis commissioned by Mobil 1 from US artist David Macaluso to help publicise the start of National Oil Check Week in the UK. (You’ve never heard of National Oil Check Week before? Then Mobil’s cunning publicity stunt has claimed another victim...)
Still, we’re not ones to look a gift horse in the mouth, so when Mobil offered us one of a limited run of just 50 artist-signed prints to present to a lucky PHer – we said yes please. So if you want to win this exclusive prize, just drop an email to competitions@pistonheads.com with the word Mobil in the subject line. In time-honoured fashion we’ll pluck a random winner out of the email hat after the deadline for entries, which we’ve set for mid-day on June 15th.
In fact, if you’re feeling like a winner, you can also try your luck at winning an iPod at www.checkyouroil.co.uk or there’ll be another chance to score one of the limited-edition Lewis prints at www.mobil-1.co.uk in the run-up to the British GP.
Of the total print run of 50 Lewis pictures, more than half are being distributed internally and to VIPs by Mobil, so getting your hands on one of the remaining 20-odd could be a bit of a coup, we're told.
Macaluso is apparently a bit of an expert in the use of motor oil as a painting medium, and speaks on the subject of his latest work thus:
‘I’ve been recycling used motor oil into paintings since 2005, so it was exciting to do a portrait of Lewis, and it was a privilege. When people look at my portrait of Lewis Hamilton, I want them to know it contains the Mobil 1 that circulated inside his Mercedes-Benz engine. History was made by Hamilton with this oil, and to experience this painting is to be eye-to-eye with that history.
‘Painting with the Mobil 1 used motor oil offered a wide range of tones and was obviously a very refined product from its texture. It was extremely smooth and very particle-rich, with all the engine dirt in perpetual suspension, making for a great painting medium.’