By Spencer Durham on May 3, 2026Zionsville Cover Stories

Commercials he helped shape have appeared during the Super Bowl, the Olympics, the NBA Finals and the Academy Awards, but for someone who is relatively new to the area, Vince Cook is still trying to establish himself as an artist in the Indianapolis market.

A series of paintings Cook created depicting the drivers who have won the Indianapolis 500 four times might be what puts him on the local map.

Cook, a self-described car guy, was inspired after looking up how few drivers have achieved the feat: Rick Mears, A.J. Foyt, Al Unser Sr. and Helio Castroneves. He created 36-by-12 inch acrylic paintings of each car. The order is based on the order they achieved the accomplishment. A private buyer commissioned Cook to paint the entire series.

Each painting shows the car in focus. The background is blurred.

“I thought it would be cool to paint the camera effect,” he said.

Cook spent 30 years working for large advertising agencies like Leo Burnett Worldwide and DDB Worldwide serving as creative or artistic director. His clients included McDonald’s, ESPN, Chevrolet and Kellogg’s. Cook said he worked on 200 commercials.

“What I’ve always tried to do in my career is to get into brands I love,” he said. “I’ve been fortunate to work on things I’d love to work on if I wasn’t getting paid.”

Other Zionsville-centric paintings include the Brick Street in and the gazebo in Lincoln Park.

Cook, his wife Lori and their kids moved to Zionsville in 2020. Lori is originally from Zionsville. Cook is from St. Louis and has worked all around the world, including New Zealand, Europe, Los Angeles and, most recently, Chicago.

“It was really fun at the time to be in mass market advertising, because you’d be at the bar and say, ‘Hey, that’s my spot (on TV),’” he said.

Cook took up painting again when he moved to Zionsville. The hobby took a back seat during his advertising career. Cook grew up painting, influenced by his father who was a painter himself but could never pursue it.

Cook studied fine arts in college with the intention of being an illustrator before transitioning to directing.

“I’ve gotten to do a lot of stuff my dad could only dream of,” Cook said.

Now that he’s in a new market, Cook wants to make a name for himself as a creative. His goal is to network and work in the racing industry. Fortunately, he’s in a good town to do so.

For example, not just anywhere can one meet officials from Arrow McClaren and Andretti Global while grabbing coffee at a local shop.

“That doesn’t happen anywhere else,” he said. “I’ve met a bunch of people that way.”

It’s working so far. Cook was commissioned by a private buyer to do the Indy 500 paintings. He was scheduled to do a live painting during an Allison Transmission gala May 3.

“It’s trying to apply my skills to a subject I love,” Cook said.

Cook said he’s open to working with small- and medium-sized businesses on marketing.

“I’m kind of an agency of one,” he said.

Cook also painted, “Visors Up,” a series that captures close-up moments of drivers before a race begins. Some drivers are relaxed; others are intensely focused.

“What they do in those moments is very intentional,” Cook said. “I just thought it’s an interesting moment where you get to see their personality come through. For the most part, they’re knights in shining armor, you don’t get to see them.”

The series is available on Cook’s website, anvilcontent.com/.

Other paintings include St. Louis Cardinals great Stan Musial and Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig at Yankee Stadium as well as a few Zionsville-centric pieces. One depicts the intersection of Main and Oak streets on a rainy day featuring the brick street and Noah Grant’s. It is in the style of “Paris Street; Rainy Day” by Gustave Caillebotte. The other is of the gazebo in Lincoln Park.

Cook enjoys the town’s aesthetic, which he described as a Norman Rockwell painting.

“Zionsville is really picturesque and timeless,” he said. “People who live here love that about it.”

Vince Cook compares his painting of the intersection of Oak and Main streets in downtown Zionsville to “Paris Street; Rainy Day” by Gustave Caillebotte, which inspired the painting.

Where to find Cook’s work

Vince Cook also dabbles in photography, including portraits, student photos and corporate photography. He plans to start his own photography business.

To see more of Cook’s photography and paintings, visit vincecookstudio.myportfolio.com/vince-cook-studios.

His advertising work, including a series of commercials for ESPN Radio 1000 in Chicago and for Margaritaville at Sea, can be found at anvilcontent.com/.

Cook is an adjunct professor at Butler University, where he teaches fine arts and strategic communications.