The automobile is arguably one of the most important industrial design objects of the last century. The Museum of Modern Art in New York has a 1946 Cisitalia designed by Pinin Farina in its permanent collection.

MOMA’s catalog says, “The Cisitalia is the first automobile to have entered the collection of any art museum in the world and as such symbolizes the Museum’s conviction that examples of industrial design can have real aesthetic value and at their best are worthy of consideration as art objects.” So it should come as no surprise that there’s a thriving body of fine art featuring automobiles.

There’s even a group, the Automotive Fine Arts Society, which exhibits every year at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. About 30 artists, painting in oils and watercolors, or sculpting, show their work.

For me, the best subjects are racing, classic, or antique cars, especially in sculpture. Here are four examples of indoor and outdoor work. The biggest first: Francois Chevalier of France specializes in full-sized bronzes of classical racing cars. Illustrated is his Alfa Romeo P3 Grand Prix car of 1932.

This piece is owned by Tom & Gwen Price of Belvedere, and is displayed at Tom’s office/car collection building in Marin. Tom bought it several years ago at a Carmel Valley auction. It’s quite a testimony to his fine artistic eye that it looks as if it were specially commissioned for the site it occupies. Tom’s no stranger to beautiful cars and buildings. His Tuscan-style office houses one of the area’s most significant car collections, mostly race cars.

The large indoor piece is a 1934 Packard LeBaron phaeton in copper-plated steel, created by Richard Crane of Eureka about 15 years ago. This was his first and only car in this large scale – about one-fifth the size of the real thing. Automotive art dealer Carl Schneider of Eureka, who sells internationally, showed me this piece about 10 years ago. I was hooked immediately and had to have it for my library.

The small (slightly over one foot long) Essence of Cadillac, by a French sculptor called Prince, captures the flavor of those mid-century Cadillacs as perhaps only an outsider could; his French eye sees Cadillacs as we never could. The sculpture came from a Paris gallery called Vitesse (speed), which is devoted entirely to automotive and aviation art.

The last illustration, a sketch, will become a sculpture in bronze, and is by Steve Posson of Atascadero – one of America’s leading automotive sculptors. He will cast an edition of 75 pieces, one for each of the participants in the 2005 California Mille, Nob Hill’s annual historic racing car 1,000 mile tour. The car is a 1934/5 Fiat Balilla Coppa d’Oro, an Italian classic, as it might have appeared in a Mille Miglia race of its time.

In a few words, auto art is beautiful, brings immense satisfaction, and doesn’t leak oil or require costly repairs.