James Stevens - Mansell X Senna: Taxi Home - Embellished Canvas 100cm X 100cm

Nigel Mansell giving Ayrton Senna a lift back to the pits on his Williams after the 1991 British Grand Prix.

Two of Formula 1's greatest rivals, sharing a car home, one of the most iconic and human moments the sport has ever produced.

The Concept

The starting point for this piece was a moment rather than a composition. At the 1991 British Grand Prix at Silverstone, Ayrton Senna ran out of fuel on the final lap. Nigel Mansell, who had just taken victory, stopped his Williams on track and gave his rival a lift back to the pits on the sidepod. Two of the greatest drivers of their era, fierce competitors, sharing a car home.

James wanted to capture not the race itself but the human quality of that moment. The rivalry between Mansell and Senna is well documented, but this incident reveals something else: a mutual respect and a shared love of the sport that existed beneath the competition. That tension between rivalry and respect is what the painting is built around.

The composition places the pair driving directly toward the viewer, a deliberate choice to create presence and draw the eye immediately into the scene. The abstract element, a series of bold white sweeping lines, was developed to introduce motion and guide the viewer across the canvas. What began as a single line evolved organically into something more expressive during the process, a good example of how James allows a painting to develop beyond its original concept.

The Painting

The piece is executed in oil on a 1 x 1 metre stretched canvas. The dominant use of red was a decision made during the concept phase. It was chosen to contrast the Williams livery while picking up on the red and yellow accents already present in the car and Senna's helmet and suit. The result is one of the most striking and bold pieces in James's collection.

The painting balances detailed realism in the drivers and the car with James's signature abstract world. The white sweeping lines carve through the composition, adding energy and directing the eye without competing with the subject. Colour, light, and composition work together to hold the viewer and carry them through the scene.

This piece also has a live painting history. James brought a near-completed version to the Goodwood Festival of Speed in 2025, completing final touches in front of an audience. That process is central to how James works at live events, and for collectors it adds a dimension to the provenance of the piece.