DaSilva
By John Vatne

May 1, 1994 was a dark day in the world of Formula One. The loss of Ayrton Senna sent shock waves through Brazil. The country effectively shut down to morn the passing of their hero.

Thousands of miles away in Stevens Point Wisconsin I was studying art, working towards my BFA at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point. If you mentioned the name Ayrton Senna in the art department one worldly professor and a few students would know who he was.

In the late 80s and early 90s, when the Senna vs. Prost wars were at their peak, I was in the Prost camp. The loss of this Brazilian driver did not make me jump onto the Senna bandwagon, but it did touch something deep inside me.

A year later as a Junior, I was up to my neck in art projects. One night while sitting at a drawing table I sketched out a thumbnail of what was to become “DaSilva”. For those of you unfamiliar with Ayrton Senna, he dropped going by his full name, Ayrton Senna DaSilva before reaching Formula One.

Why was I working on an image of a driver whose tactics I had questioned over the years? “DaSilva” is not about love or hate. It is not about idol worship, or trying to live vicariously through an image on T.V. “DaSilva” is about respect.

If you would like a full size reproduction of ?DaSilva? as a desktop for you computer, check the Complimentary section of this website. It is located under Art Gallery.