Meet David Uhl, Harley-Davidson’s first licensed oil painter
In 1988, David Uhl purchased his first motorcycle and 30 years later, he’s created hundreds of oil paintings for Harley-Davidson. Pulling inspiration from bikes past and present, Uhl captures the spirit of the open road with each careful stroke. Uhl takes black-and-white photographs, some of which haven’t seen the light of day for decades, and brings them back to life on canvas. His timeless approach to artistic application blended with an all-American composition makes the work of David Uhl stand the test of time, in more ways than one.
How did purchasing your first bike in 1988 inspire you to start creating paintings featuring motorcycles?
I can remember loving the feeling of acceleration more than anything. If there was something that ignited any artistic inspirational thoughts, it would have been being exposed to the whole riding culture and capturing that lifestyle. I translated my creative impulses into T shirt designs at that time.
What led you to then begin working with Harley-Davidson, first creating apparel and then becoming a licensed oil painter?
I really wanted a Harley, but couldn’t afford one back then. At that time, The Motor Co. was flying high and anything with a bar and shield required getting on a waiting list, especially bikes. I figured I should apply all my artistic talents to getting their attention first. I initiated that by flying to an international dealer meeting in Boston with a portfolio. A local dealer took me up to meet all the top brass, and I ended up coming home with a t-shirt design contract with their most popular license: Holoubek.
This story is from the July 2019 edition of Inked.
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This story is from the July 2019 edition of Inked.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
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