CART Commissions Renowned Western Artist to Create Mario Andretti Trophy for Inaugural All-Star Team
30 June 1999
DETROIT - Championship Auto Racing Teams has commissioned renowned western artist Elie Hazak to create the prestigious Mario Andretti Trophy, which will serve as the centerpiece of the inaugural 1999 CART All-Star Team.CART selected Hazak to produce the Mario Andretti Trophy in an effort to offer a unique approach to creating trophies as well as a gesture of gratitude to the auto racing legend who lent his name to it. CART worked with Andretti to allow him the rare opportunity to select one of his favorite artists and then provide major input into the trophy's creation as a valued piece of bronze sculptured art.
The Mario Andretti Trophy is a post-season award that will be given to the Champ Car driver who earns the most points through voting from a select group of motorsports writers and highlights the leading driver of the five-member CART All-Star Team.
"Many trophies do not exhibit the passion or intimate features that represent the true heart and soul of the person for which they are named," CART President and Chief Executive Officer Andrew Craig said. "By commissioning one of Mario's favorite artists and then having Mario discuss his career and his passion for the sport with Elie, this creation of fine art will carry significant meaning for all those involved."
Andretti was introduced to Hazak's work in early March at a Scottsdale, Arizona gallery that featured the artist's bronze sculptures that depict vivid scenes of Indians, cowboys and mountain men. The detail and intellect of Hazak's creations immediately impressed him.
"They were not like anything I had seen before - and I've been around. His work is not cold bronze, but bronze with emotion. Elie's bronze is alive," said Andretti, who owns 52 victories and an all-time high 67 poles in his illustrious Champ Car career. "The CART audience is about to be awakened by an incredible artist. No one knows what I am talking about yet, but anyone with an appreciation for depth and intellect and expression will be fascinated by this man's ability to capture feeling in bronze. This trophy is going to be richer and more meaningful than CART could have imagined. And we will thank Elie Hazak for finding a new, more human way to approach a trophy."
Hazak, a 54-year-old Jewish immigrant who lives in Thousand Oaks, Calif., specializes in bronze sculptures of the Western variety. He was raised near Mt. Zion in Jerusalem, the burial place of King David, and was fascinated by art and particularly sculpture since his youth. He studied at the Bel Zallel Art School in Jerusalem before coming to the United States in 1969 at the age of 24.
Hazak's accomplishments include being one of a handful of living artists whose work is on permanent display at the Thomas Gilcrease Museum in Tulsa, Oklahoma, the foremost showcase of Western art in the United States. He also produced a cast titanium eagle on behalf of the American delegation for the 1984 International Conference On Titanium in Munich, Germany.
Although Hazak does not normally produce trophies, he was enthralled by the opportunity to create a trophy in the honor of an auto racing legend. In addition to the Mario Andretti Trophy, he also has been commissioned to create the individual trophies for the four other CART All-Star Team members.
"I was overwhelmed with excitement when I heard Mario Andretti had requested me to design the trophy that would be named after him,'' Hazak said. "For the next few days after receiving the news, I was calling everybody I know and telling them that Mario Andretti had asked for me to design the Mario Andretti Trophy. When I was done telling everybody I know, I even called people I didn't know. That's how I felt. To understand the magnitude of the compliment that has been given to me, I cannot find the words to express it."
Andretti and Hazak met for the first time in mid-April during CART's Long Beach race weekend and both were honored by the other's presence. A bond was immediately created after the two discussed their upbringing and passion for their respective professions. Both were immigrants - Andretti from Italy and Hazak from Israel - who came to the United States with little money but plenty of dreams.
"I've come to know Elie as an intricate and complex man from Jerusalem who has been driven by passion all of his life. I can relate so well to that kind of passion," Andretti said. "Growing up, he wanted so badly to sculpt that he would go to Mt. Zion to the burial place of King David, catch melted wax from the candles and sculpt it. That is passion. And when he came to this country in 1969, he was 24, had $15 and his fascination with sculptures had become a clear inspiration.. Can I ever identify with that. It's so terrific that he made it as an artist. I am so anxious to have him unveil my story in bronze."
Hazak currently is working on the trophy design and is scheduled to produce the mold in July. By the end of July or early August, the trophy will be made into bronze and a month later it will be welded together and completed. The trophy, which will sit atop a walnut base, is expected to be between 36 and 37 inches in height and weigh between 40-50 pounds. An official unveiling of the Mario Andretti Trophy will be announced at a later date.
"At this point, I am determined to reach inside myself and bring forth all of my creative abilities and hope to make him proud of his decision to chose me to create the Mario Andretti Trophy," Hazak said.
The CART All-Star Team will consist of five Champ Car drivers who are selected through balloting from a voting committee comprised of a select panel of motorsports media, FedEx Championship Series drivers and a celebrity trio consisting of actors Tim Allen and Anthony Edwards, and 1999 Baseball Hall of Fame inductee Robin Yount.
The voting process will have the panelists select five Champ Car drivers on their ballots and rank them in order of merit as points will be awarded to each driver in descending order. The first driver selected will receive 10 points; second, seven (7) points; third, five (5) points; fourth, three (3) points; fifth, one (1) point. The Champ Car driver who earns the most points on the ballots will be awarded the Mario Andretti Trophy, the showcase award for the CART All-Star Team.
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