Rimowa x Kaleidoscope: it’s not about the car, it's about design

Lost his license, he sold the car. “My daughter was super sad”, tells Guillermo Santomà, the Mexican artist whose Fuorisalone installation, GAS, is centred on an old Hyundai that he tore apart and reconstructed with Rimowa aluminium. “Then, one day, I bought this one”, he continues, “and she was so happy, but I said to her: next week I'll begin to work”. GAS is an explicit tribute to Ed Ruscha’s Twentysix Gasoline Stations series and a homage to custom cars culture – “for sure Mad Max was among the inspirations, but we didn’t want to be too retro futuristic”, comments the artist, whose eyes shine of candid enthusiasm during our visit to the installation in Spazio Maiocchi, a former garage turned into exhibition space.

The car, suspended on a side, is illuminated by an aerial sculpture made of neon tubes and frames of Rimowa’s suitcases. A photo zine and short film shot by Thibaut Grevet between the Monegros desert and the artist’s studio, displayed on a wall of old TVs, complete the project. “At the end the desert trip the car was all brown and we had to clean it up. We even substituted some of the aluminium sheets”.

How many suitcases did you destroy to make the car?
(He laughs) They shipped 50 sheets, that's like 25 suitcases. Was this your “first” car?
Yes, but in one of my last shows we built a motorcycle, so this car was the next step. It took only two months. How did you approach this project?
A car is related to design and technology, but also architecture. And it’s the first symmetrical thing that I do. Does the car work?
Yes! The most important thing was to use it, go to the desert and film it. Even the stereo is working (he points to a huge speaker that's located where backseats should be).

Won’t the body vibrate when you play music?
Yes a bit. But I like it. Did it enjoy customizing it with Rimowa aluminium?
Usually cars are made of steel, aluminium is different, but not that different. The seats are made of foam, covered by resin. (He punches the car). Can you see? It's really resistant. Even here (pointing at the angles), where we bent the aluminium. It's like an arch in architecture. Can you see more cars in your future?
We don't want to make cars! (he laughs) If I do a chair, it's the same after all. I want to do something that's interesting in the design world. Design is more than furniture. Lots of artists are designing pieces, a company to make a car or a chair has to work with many designers.