Andrea Zagato who, together with Norihiko Harada, created the Ottovù presented at Geneva in a bid to revive the prestigious Turin marque Diatto 70 years after its demise, talks of a “neoclassical theme”.
The Japanese designer, who recently created the Ferrari 575 GTZ for Zagato, speaks rather of his intention to design “something non-subjective, something natural and unaffected with typical, timeless sports car proportions”.
These two views are not contradictory and, if anything, are proof that the automotive industry today is experiencing a certain disenchantment – tangible even in a marque known for innovation such as Zagato – with high concept design languages, leading many to seek solace in the past.
“At the end of any historic era”, admits Andrea Zagato, “there is a tendency to celebrate the epochal milestones of that era. It has always happened in architecture and it is now happening with the motor car, an industry in which every possible avenue has already been explored. The progeny of this era includes the Mini which, as it happens, has been celebrated with a neoclassical product, the 500, a new version of which will be the cherry on the cake for
Fiat’s renaissance, the Beetle, the Mustang and the GT40. For us as a coachbuilder specialising in Italian sports cars in particular, the 1950s and 1960s were the most significant period of all, and it is to this era that we looked for inspiration for the Ottovù.”…
The article continues in Auto & Design no. 164
