Versatile artist

In the 1920s, Roy Anthony Nockolds (1911–1979) had to compete with established magazine illustrators such as Gordon Crosby. His talent did not go unnoticed: his brother Harold was a prominent motoring journalist and the author of the famous Rolls-Royce history ‘The Magic of a Name’, which undoubtedly helped open doors to the most exclusive car manufacturers. Nockolds excelled not only in mechanical precision but also had a razor-sharp eye for the driver; he was acclaimed for his ability to capture the exact, intensely focused posture of racing drivers behind the wheel. During the Second World War, he also served as an official war artist for the Royal Air Force, using his technical expertise to develop revolutionary camouflage for the wooden Mosquito fighter aircraft.