I began working part-time in 2022 for Driving 101, which owns and operates the NASCAR Racing Experience (NRE). My home track was the track of all tracks; Superspeedway, Daytona International Speedway.
NRE receives used tires from The Truck Series and Xfinity teams, which are barely used, but once NRE has gotten the maximum use out of them, they are offered to the public for purchase at a very low cost. I grabbed a few of these tires to make art out of, but at the time, I was not sure exactly what I would create.
I decided to decoupage the tires with printed tissue paper and acrylic paint, which was a learning process as I progressed. I bought the paper on Zazzle, put decoupage on the tire as adhesive, and then painted it to blend it in. The first one I did had sea turtles on the tissue paper, and after I blended it with paint, it did not look like tissue paper anymore. I then sealed it with Mod Podge and a clear coat spray. I ended up giving them both away because I did not have the room anymore, but it was fun to create, as I learned a new application process. The second one I did was harder as it was checkerboard print. I later learned that the oils in the tire soaked through, leading to yellowing through the white areas.
After they were both dry, I took them to the track to take final photos of them with the iconic and famous World Center of Racing grandstand in the background.
