MANY sports stars have been known to venture down a new path once their sporting days are over.
And former Formula One driver Stefan Johansson is among them.
The Swede competed in F1 between 1983 and 1991, racing against titans of the sport such as Aryton Senna, Nigel Mansell and Alain Prost to name a few.
Johansson, 67, achieved 12 podiums throughout his career while racing with the likes of Ferrari, McLaren and Tyrell.
But during the 1986 season Johansson started to explore his artistic side, picking up a brush in honour of close friend Elio de Angelis, who died in testing at the start of the season.
After his F1 career concluded, Johansson continued to have success in motorsport, notably winning the Le Mans 24 Hours in a Porsche in 1997 alongside Michele Alboreto and Tom Kristensen.
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However, from the tragic embers which kickstarted his dive into painting, Johansson soon created an impressive portfolio of work.
The name of one of his collections: “Friends, Heroes and W***ers,” feature famous faces on canvas with text over the top of them, including Senna and Enzo Ferrari among a host of well-known people.
According to his website: “The paintings project the philosophy and attitudes of my various subjects, and the goal is to bring new perspectives to these individuals that have become known through their own intellect and accomplishments.
“In this particular case it was the primary inspiration for me applying paint to canvas.
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“The quotes painted on the portraits were chosen to reflect this inspiration but not necessarily as a means to communicate or convince others of their meaning.”
His painting also draws on his F1 career, with a collection called “Urban Pointillism” displaying a number of drivers and their cars.
Meanwhile his “Memories of a past life” collection bear a number of striking images and patterns and are suitably named after corner or a section of various race circuits around the world.
These fine art pieces can be brought from anywhere between £102 to £265 on his website.
Painting is not the only way Johansson has shown his artistic side, with scented candles, designer watches, skateboards and hats also among the ex-F1 driver’s range.
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Source: Motorsport - thesun.co.uk
