PressClub Portugal · Article.
ROLLS-ROYCE MOTOR CARS 2017: THE YEAR OF BESPOKE
Fri Jan 12 09:49:00 CET 2018 Informação à Imprensa
The Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Bespoke department is an extraordinary collective of designers, engineers and craftspeople, who bring the marque’s discerning and influential patrons’ most ambitious and personal visions to reality.
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Joao Trincheiras
BMW Group
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Author.
Joao Trincheiras
BMW Group
The Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Bespoke department is an extraordinary
collective of designers, engineers and craftspeople, who bring the
marque’s discerning and influential patrons’ most ambitious and
personal visions to reality.
Today, almost every motor car that leaves the Home of
Rolls-Royce in Goodwood, England, is Bespoke. 2017 was the year that
Rolls-Royce elevated Bespoke to unprecedented new levels, resulting in
one of the most significant years for Bespoke in the 114-year history
of the brand. What follows is a snapshot of some of the finest
examples of Bespoke design and craftsmanship to be completed by the
luxury house over the past 12 months.
‘Sweptail’
Rolls-Royce ‘Sweptail’, the
realisation of one customer’s coachbuilt dream. Premiered in 2017,
‘Sweptail’ is a compelling representation of true luxury, taking
Bespoke coachbuild personalisation to new heights. The result of a
collaboration between patron and artisan, ‘Sweptail’s’ bold design
embraces the marque’s heritage as the world’s leading coachbuilder
whilst reaffirming its pinnacle position in Bespoke personalisation.
This automotive equivalent of Haute Couture draws on the lineage
of 1920s and 1930s Rolls-Royce motor cars. The client’s vision was for
a coachbuilt two seater coupé featuring a large panoramic glass roof.
The result is a contemporary masterpiece.
The grille, milled from solid aluminium, presents a distinct
formality. The side profile of ‘Sweptail’ defines its stately
character, whilst the rear taper of the motor car pays homage to the
world of racing yachts, shaping a completely new perception of a
dramatic Rolls-Royce coupé.The elegant and characterising rear
culminates in the registration number 08, milled from ingots of
aluminium and hand polished to a mirror finish.
‘Sweptail’ is a personal, Bespoke, motor car like no other.
New Phantom and ‘The Gallery’ – An Art Gallery on Wheels
New Rolls-Royce Phantom was unveiled to global
critical acclaim in 2017. At the heart of the motor car’s design
aesthetic is ‘The Gallery’, a contemporary and luxury reinterpretation
of a motor car’s dashboard and instrument panel.
An application of glass runs uninterrupted across the fascia
providing an unprecedented opportunity to present artwork, within your
motor car. ‘The Gallery’ is an innovation that furthers Rolls-Royce’s
unparalleled Bespoke vision and mastery of materials and craft.
Dawn and Wraith at Porto Cervo
Two unique motor cars were created in honour of the
2017 Rolls-Royce Summer Studio, Porto Cervo, Sardinia. A Bespoke Dawn
Drophead Coupé and a Wraith Black Badge were commissioned to
encapsulate the essence of this beguiling island.
Dawn adopted a nautical theme, evoking emotions of a languid
Mediterranean sojourn. The Porto Cervo motif, encrusted with genuine
Sapphires and Mother of Pearl, is embedded into the front facia of the
motor car. The navy blue and arctic white hues complement an expanse
of teak, including the decking and floor.
The Porto Cervo Wraith playfully emulates Sardinia’s night time
ambience. A two-tone Diamond Black exterior is contrasted with gloss
and matt paint applications, while black woven leather door panniers
infer Wraith Black Badge’s dark and complex character, under the night sky.
‘Spirit of Calligraphy’ Ghost
A special one-off commission unveiled in Dubai in
2017, the Bespoke ‘Spirit of Calligraphy’ Ghost draws its design
inspiration from the ancient art of Arabic calligraphy. Words are
harmoniously moulded into shapes, creating a unique effect where texts
and images become one. Sir Henry Royce’s resonant words “Take the best
that exists and make it better. When it does not exist, design it”, in
their Arabic form are shaped into Rolls-Royce’s flying mascot, the
Spirit of Ecstasy. The calligraphy motif, created by renowned artist
Khaled Al Saai, features as a silver inlay on the centre panel and as
embroidery on the rear centre seat, amidst an eye-catching array of
Turchese, Black and Arctic White leathers.
‘Elegance’
Commissioned for an individual collector, the Ghost
‘Elegance’ raised the bar of Bespoke by becoming the first Rolls-Royce
to be finished in a paint infused with diamonds. The flanks of the
motor car are highlighted with Mugello Red and Black twin coachlines,
reflected inside with black leather seats and accents in Mugello Red,
carried through stitching on the doors and piping on the seats. The
detailed fascia of smooth open-pore Tudor Oak veneer is also
complemented with a Mugello Red single stitch along the top of the
dashboard, and finished with a Bespoke clock.
‘Dawn in Fuxia’
In 2017, US collector Michael Fux was presented with
his tenth Bespoke model from Rolls-Royce Motor Cars. Following a visit
to Pebble Beach in 2016, where he collected a cluster of eye-catching
fuchsia petals, he challenged the Bespoke team at Goodwood with a
commission to bring a striking new colour to Dawn. Subsequently
unveiled during The Quail automotive gathering in California, the
vibrant ‘Dawn in Fuxia’ represents the addition of another unique hue
to the Rolls-Royce Colour Collection, and is reserved exclusively for
Mr. Fux to use. His most recent commission is his second Dawn, having
collected the first – in one-off ‘Fux Blue’ – in 2016. Reminiscent of
that car, the interior of ‘Dawn in Fuxia’ is trimmed in stunning
Arctic White leather.
‘Dawn B50’ for Hotel Byblos
In celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Hotel
Byblos in Saint-Tropez in 2017, Rolls-Royce Motor Cars revealed the
‘Dawn B50’, a highly Bespoke and unique motor car inspired by the
warmth and vibrancy of the Côte d'Azur. Commissioned by the Hotel
Byblos as the automotive ‘Jewel of Saint-Tropez’, the Dawn B50 exudes
two dominant exterior colours. The lustrous combination was developed
exclusively to celebrate the hotel’s anniversary, along with bespoke
door treadplates and a unique hand-painted coachline on each side
bearing the ‘B50’ logo. The sophisticated interior takes inspiration
from the intense Mediterranean sun, with vibrant tangerine tones that
accentuate the dashboard and echo the stitching across the seat
upholstery and floor mats.
Homage to a special Silver Dawn
Prominently displayed at the Home of Rolls-Royce is a
remarkably rare 1952 Silver Dawn Drophead Coupé, one of very few ever
made. It was sold new to a customer in Canada, and in 2017 a
commission for a new Dawn from the same country led to a beautiful
homage to this particular car in its 65th anniversary year.
Finished in two-tone Midnight Sapphire and Jubilee Silver, the
new Dawn closely emulates the original finishes of the 1952 motor car,
with a Bespoke painted coachline, broken for the first time on a
Rolls-Royce. Inside, Selby Grey and Navy leather are combined with
Crossbanded Walnut Burr veneer, closely matched to the original. The
finishing touches include a Bespoke clock with ‘1952’ lettering and a
Spirit of Ecstasy veneer inlay.
Inspiration from South Korea
The ‘Bespoke Collection for Korea’ unveiled at the
British Embassy in Seoul, embraced the aesthetic heritage of South
Korea with a contemporary flare. The Ghost Seoul Edition reflects
colours that grace the country’s Taegukgi national flag, finished in
bright Andalusian White with a twin coachline in Cobalto Blue and
Mugello Red – along with a hand-painted Bespoke motif that captures
the silhouette of the iconic Namsan Seoul Tower. Inside, the black
leather is complemented by contrasting bands in Arctic White, as well
as blue and red highlights for stitching and piping.
The ‘Wraith Busan Edition’ is inspired by the hues of the
coastal city of the same name, with a two-tone exterior in Royal Blue
and Jubilee Silver that conjures up the shimmer of the surrounding
sea. The rear pillar motif echoes the delicate latticework of
traditional Korean ‘hanok’ screen doors, and is also carried inside
the car across the dashboard. Emulating the dusk sky across nearby
mountain ranges, a single coachline in Blushing Pink draws attention
to the shoulder line. The colour is also applied to the seat
stitching, instrument panel and ‘RR’ headrest monograms inside, as the
final flourish to the Selby Grey and Cobalto Blue upholstery.