Gulf Speed Festival — Automotive Art Meets Motorsport
Invited by Gulf to create a special collection and perform a live painting during the inaugural Gulf Speed Festival in São Paulo, Brazil.
Gulf Speed Festival
Automotive art and motorsport have always shared the same source of inspiration: speed, design, emotion and the machines that become part of our culture.
In 2024, I had the privilege of being invited by Gulf Oil to participate as an automotive artist in the Gulf Speed Festival, an event created to celebrate Gulf's first year of operations in Brazil and the brand's legendary connection with motorsport.
Held on September 29 at the iconic Anhembi Sambadrome in São Paulo, the festival brought together approximately 10,000 automotive and motorsport enthusiasts for a day combining racing, music, exhibitions and interactive experiences.
For JCARCUSTOM, however, the story began before the event itself.
Gulf Speed Festival
Creating the Gulf Art Collection
For the Gulf Speed Festival, I developed a special collection of five original hand-painted artworks, each inspired by the unmistakable visual identity and racing heritage of Gulf.
The objective was to explore different chapters of automotive culture through my own artistic language while maintaining the colors, energy and motorsport history that have made Gulf one of the most recognizable brands in the automotive world.
All five original paintings were exhibited together during the festival, creating a dedicated connection between automotive art and Gulf's racing heritage.
After the event, the story of the collection continued beyond Brazil.
The artworks eventually found new homes with private collectors in the United States, taking pieces originally created for the Gulf Speed Festival from my studio in São Paulo to collections abroad.
For me, seeing these paintings continue their journey thousands of miles away was another reminder of how automotive culture can connect people across borders.
A Celebration of Gulf's Motorsport Heritage
The Gulf Speed Festival itself was much more than a traditional automotive event.
Created to celebrate Gulf's first year of operations in Brazil, the festival brought the brand's motorsport heritage directly to Brazilian fans through cars, exhibitions, interactive experiences and live entertainment.
One of the biggest attractions was the presence of Williams Racing Formula One driver Alex Albon, who performed in the Williams FW45 wearing the spectacular Gulf “Bolder than Bold” livery.
The design had originally been selected by fans through a global vote that received more than 180,000 votes and had previously appeared during the 2023 Formula One season. At the Gulf Speed Festival, Brazilian fans had the opportunity to experience the car in action at the Anhembi Sambadrome.
Being surrounded by that combination of Formula One, Gulf's history, extraordinary cars and thousands of automotive enthusiasts created the perfect environment for what would become the most important part of my participation.
Painting Live at the Gulf Speed Festival
Alongside the five-piece collection, Gulf invited me to create an original painting live during the event.
Instead of arriving with a completed artwork, this piece began and developed in front of the public.
Throughout the festival, visitors were able to watch the painting evolve — from the composition and first layers to the details that gradually brought the artwork to life.
The subject was a Ford GT wearing the legendary Gulf racing colors, connecting one of motorsport's most recognizable liveries with a car deeply associated with Gulf's racing heritage.
Live painting creates an experience completely different from working inside the studio.
People don't simply see the finished artwork.
They see the process.
And eventually they see a blank canvas become a finished piece of automotive art.
For me, that interaction between artist, automobile, brand and audience is what makes live automotive painting so special.
Gulf Speed Festival
A Painting for Gulf
When the festival ended, the story of the live painting didn't.
The original artwork was presented as a gift to Gulf.
Today, the painting remains displayed at Gulf's office, becoming a permanent reminder of the event and of the collaboration between Gulf and JCARCUSTOM.
That makes this particular artwork especially meaningful to me.
The five paintings created for the collection eventually traveled to collectors in the United States.
But the painting created live stayed with the company that inspired the entire project.
From an empty canvas at the beginning of the festival to a permanent piece inside Gulf's office, the artwork became part of the history of that experience.
Gulf Speed Festival — Project Details
Client: Gulf
Event: Gulf Speed Festival
Year: 2024
Location: Anhembi Sambadrome — São Paulo, Brazil
Participation: Invited Automotive Artist
Collection: Five Original Acrylic Paintings
Featured Experience: Live Automotive Painting
Live Artwork: Gulf Ford GT
Special Detail: Live artwork presented to Gulf and displayed at the company's office
Collection Destination: Private collectors in the United States
Artist: Julio Cesar Caetano — JCARCUSTOM