The cars, which will be covered in real flowers according to the designers' sketches (shown here), have been commissioned by the Flower Council of Holland. Top image: Arne Quinze. Above: Studio Job.
Dezeen has exclusive use of the whole fleet on Wednesday 16 April at 12.00 noon and we are offering rides around Zona Tortona to five Dezeen readers (plus two friends each). Above: Karim Rashid.
Above: FredriksonStallard.
NB winners will need to be available for their ride at midday next Wednesday. If you're not going to be in Milan, please don't enter! Rides will depart from in front of the NHow Hotel at Via Tortona 35. Above: Arik Levy.
This competition has now closed. Above: Arne Quinze.
Flower Cars concept and creative direction is by Dezeen editor-in-chief Marcus Fairs. Above: Cockroach motif by Studio Job.
More on the new Fiat 500 in our earlier story.
Here's some more info about Flower Cars from the Flower Council of Holland:
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MILAN FURNITURE FAIR 2008
FLOWER POWER FIATS TAKE TO THE STREETS
In two weeks time, Milan plays host to the major international furniture and interior design event of the year when Salone di Mobile opens its doors to the world’s design community. But outside the gigantic halls of the Fair, there is just as much to see and admire as designers show off their creativity and inspiration on the fringes. As big and as important as the fair is, more and more of the hip crowd forgo the show completely and head to the influential design district of Milan called the Zona Tortona. This district in Milan has become known for housing the hottest young designers for the week of the Salone di Mobile and many of the key parties and events take place here.
This year, The Flower Council of Holland will also be taking up residence in Zona Tortona. Set up to promote the use of cut flowers and plants, the Flower Council has invited five influential designers to create a team of Flower Power Fiats which will be based there. Each designer has created a design using flowers to decorate the Fiat 500, arguably one of Italy’s most iconic cars, and visitors to the Zona Tortona will be able to admire and may even be able to hitch a lift in one of the floral Fiats.
From Studio Job, whose design incorporates pure white chrysanthemums and giant black coachroaches, to internationally renowned designer Karim Rashid, whose Fiat will feature flowers in his trademark pink, the designers have been given free rein to explore their floral fantasies with a wide collection of flowers available, from fashionable chrysanthemums, rapidly becoming one of the most in-demand flowers, to Holland’s most famous flower, the tulip. The other designers who have created designs for the Fiats are Fredrikson Stallard, Studio Arne Quinze and Arik Levy.
The Fiats will be located by the entrance to Superstudio on Press Day, Tuesday 15th April and Wednesday 16th April and will be available to pick up journalists and transport them around Zona Tortona. Simply show up at the special Floral Car Stop at the entrance to Zona Tortona to get a lift.
Rolant Cornelis, spokesman for the Flower Council of Holland commented: “Our aim, at the Flower Council, is to match the beauty of the flowers with creativity and imagination. Add to this the iconic design of the Fiat 500, and the inspiration of five of the world’s most renowned designers, and the result is a wonderfully original visual display of flower power that is sure to stop the traffic!”
THE DESIGNERS
Karim Rashid
Karim Rashid is a leading figure in the fields of product, interior, fashion, furniture, lighting design and art. Born in Cairo, half Egyptian, half English, and raised in Canada, Karim now practices in New York. He is best known for bringing his democratic design sensibility to the masses. Designing for an impressive array of clients from Alessi to Dirt Devil, Umbra to Prada, Miyake to Method, Karim is radically changing the aesthetics of product design and the very nature of the consumer culture. He has had some 2500 objects put into production to date.
Fredrikson Stallard
Patrik Fredrikson and Ian Stallard began their collaboration in 1995 and have since become internationally recognised as leading exponents of British Avant-Garde design. Their cutting edge work is highly regarded and customers are amongst the leading names in contemporary design and include David Gill Galleries, Contrasts Galleries, Swarovski, Oscar de la Renta, MoMA, Paul Smith and The Conran Shop. In 2006 they launched a new collection of edition furniture with David Gill Galleries in London which was launched at Art Basel Miami Beach and were also shown at the Design Museum in London.
Studio Job
Belgian based Studio Job is Job Smeets and Nynke Tynagel, a young Belgian/Dutch couple whose idiosyncratic work sits between art and design. In Milan in 2005 the pair created the outstanding Rock Furniture, a range of cast aluminium seating with a baroque, crystalline form for Milanese manufacturer Dilmos they also showed Insects, an unsettling two-tone pattern of bugs printed on wall coverings, tiles and fabrics. Insects are a recurring theme for the pair who used bugs as part of the Viking Exhibition they created for the Centraal Museum in Utrecht.
Studio Arne Quinze
Belgian artist Arne Quinze joined the design scene in 1999 with his ‘primary pouf’- an object renowned for its simplicity, material and delirious colours it was born a hit. In 2006 he gained notoriety for creating Uchronia a gigantic sculpture built with wooden slats and nails in the Black Rock Desert, Nevada as part of the infamous Burning Man Festival.
Arik Levy
Arik Levy has quickly risen in his field to become one of the most interesting and varied industrial designers producing in the 21st century. Arik graduated in 1991 from the Art Centre College of Design in Switzerland and moved to Paris where he designed sets for film and tv production. In 1997 he joined the Ldesign group as a partner with Pippo Lionni. Arik has since seen had work produced by numerous companies, including Gaia & Gino, Baleri Italia, Ligne Roset, Materialise, and Snowcrash. His ‘mistic candleholders’ won a design plus award in 2006, and his designs can be found in the collection of the Musuem of Modern art, New York as well as the Jerusalem museum.
Notes for Editors
The Flower Council of Holland is famous for representing the best of the best in flowers and plants. As an international specialist and knowledge centre, the Flower Council of Holland is open to floral experiments, designs and the progressive ideas of creative minds, as will be seen in Milan.
On behalf of producers and traders the Flower Council of Holland is actively involved in the international marketing and promotion of cut flowers and pot plants from the Netherlands. The Flower Council closely monitors consumers and markets, communicating through a wide range of activities, and always in partnership with the market players involved.
www.flowercouncil.org