Motoring art: Dan Palatnik

By Mick Walsh

Features

| 7 Mar 2025

Classic & Sports Car – Motoring art: Dan Palatnik

Growing up in Rio de Janeiro during the 1960s, Dan Palatnik became fascinated by old American cars.

“My father was an engineer and he drove a Chevrolet sedan,” he recalls.

“At weekends he’d take me to the suburbs to show me the cars in the scrapyards.

“I loved his stories about the old Hudsons or Mercury Eights we discovered. That’s how my hobby started.”

The Jaguar XK140 by Zagato, modelled in Autodesk 3ds Max by artist Dan Palatnik

There were several wrong turns while finding his true vocation, including engineering studies at university in Rio de Janeiro.

“I was lousy at maths and switched to industrial design, but my passion was drawing,” he says.

“I left college to be a graphic illustrator and for 20 years I specialised in airbrush artwork, but eventually photography for advertising agencies took over.

“Then, after a client’s request for a 3D rendering, I decided to teach myself.”

The Alfa Romeo BAT 7’s showstopping curves, faithfully rendered in Dan Palatnik’s digital model

“I started slowly, drawing vintage radios; as my skills progressed I switched to cars and gradually commissions began to flow in,” he continues.

“One of the first was from a Ford pick-up restorer who wanted visuals showing the colour and custom wheel options.”

Another Brazilian specialist then enlisted Dan for a project with a ’48 Talbot-Lago that needed a new body, and word soon spread.

The 1966 Alfa Romeo Scarabeo; Dan’s 3D artworks are finalised in Photoshop

For building up the design, Dan has mastered Autodesk 3ds Max modelling software, but to give a rendering tone and colour he switches to Photoshop.

“My work is really just a jumble of 3D parts,” he says. “I often think of Magritte’s painting Ceci n’est pas une pipe.”

Demand for Dan’s expertise snowballed, with commissions from restorers, customisers, sculptors, collectors and model manufacturers.

The 1937 Delage D8’s swooping lines were digitised for CMA Models

From miniatures to rare sports-car restorations, the diversity of interest is remarkable: “Geoff Hacker has become a key hub for rare rebuilds and tasked me with producing renderings of American Specials including the Siebler and Grantham Stardust.

“I enjoy the research and my work helped give the owners a vision for the restored vehicle. Geoff is a great supporter.”

When Washington-based car restorer Jim Simpson started to build full-scale Speed Racers inspired by the famous Japanese manga series, Dan was enlisted to create the computerised visual, which was scaled up to produce a body buck of the wild Mach 5.

A 1963 Mercedes-Benz 230S Fintail by artist Dan Palatnik

Model manufacturers around the world are now regular clients, including ACMA and Esval.

Dan says one of his most interesting commissions was from Marshall Buck of US firm CMA Models to create a 3D study of the fabulous Pourtout-bodied 1937 Delage D8: “I admire pre-war streamlined body styles and this Delage was fabulous to recreate.

“Marshall is fastidious about accuracy and detail, so the 1:12 miniature will look stunning when finished.”

Although automotive work is the prime outlet for the talented Brazilian, he has also occasionally done boats and aircraft, including the 1925 Schneider Trophy Curtiss R3C, as raced by Jimmy Doolittle: “I would love to render all those beautiful seaplanes, particularly the fantastic Macchi MC 72, but those are probably best left to aircraft specialists.”

See more of Dan Palatnik’s work on Instagram at @danpalat and at garagemdigital.blogspot.com – or email dan.palat@gmail.com

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