1963 Chevrolet Corvette

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You are bidding on a Ltd. Ed of 150 pcs. that Gibson Guitars produced to commemorate their Gibson Corvette Guitar. This print was personally signed by Larry Shinoda in 1994. Sadly he passed away 3 years later. Here's some information on Larry from 'Wikipedia. The print is triple matted, comes with the commemorative plaque on the front from Gibson, and is in new condition. It has been stored in the original box since 1994. This piece is being offered for sale locally so I reserve the right to end the auction should it be sold. Thanks Lawrence Kiyoshi (Larry) Shinoda (March 25, 1930 – November 13, 1997) was a noted automotive designer who was best known for his work on the Chevrolet Corvette and Ford Mustang. Shinoda was born in Los Angeles, California, and grew up in Southern California where he started developing his artistic talents in grade school.[1] He was interned with his family by the U.S. Government during WW II under U.S. Executive Order 9066 into a "War Relocation Camp" at Manzanar.[2] As a young man, he built hot rods and drag-raced them on the streets of Los Angeles.[1] With his 1924 Ford roadster, he won the first National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Nationals that were held in Great Bend, Kansas, in 1955.[1] Shinoda attended the Art Center College of Design in Los Angeles (before it moved to Pasadena) but was kicked out, and went to work first for Ford Motor Company in 1955, then briefly with Packard, then General Motors in late-1956. Working with GM design chief Bill Mitchell and Corvette chief engineer Zora Arkus-Duntov, he refined work on concept cars that eventually translated into the 1963 Corvette Sting Ray and the 1968 version, patterned after Shinoda's Mako Shark show car and earlier XP 819. He also participated in the 1965 redesign of the Chevrolet Corvair, giving that car its sleek "Coke bottle" shape. In 1968 Henry Ford II hired former GM executive Bunkie Knudsen to be president of Ford. Knudsen recruited Shinoda to come to Ford in hopes of improving the styling and sales of Ford's lineup. Shinoda's first project at Ford was a high-performance Mustang known as the Boss 302 Mustang.[3] Reportedly Shinoda chose the name "Boss" as a homage to Knudsen. He led design for the Mustang models for 1970-1973 as well, but when Knudsen was fired from Ford late in 1969 Shinoda left as well. Shinoda later opened an independent design firm and did work for GM, Ford, and aftermarket companies. In addition to its in-house team, he was one of three designers under contract with American Motors Corporation (AMC) to create and build clay models of a vehicle then known as XJC, which later became the Jeep ZJ (Jeep Grand Cherokee) after Chrysler's buyout of AMC in 1987.[4] Shinoda began to have kidney problems in 1996, yet continued to be an active designer.[2] Before the transplant took place he died in 1997 at his home in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan of heart failure at age 67.[1] His daughter, Karen, formed Team Shinoda (now Shinoda Performance Vehicles) a tuner and performance parts company.[5]