Rolls-Royce Cars
Celebrate London Craft Week
It seems that we are entering an age where the excitement of harnessing digital technology to create is at an all time high.
The triumvirate of AI, faster processing times and near instant data-transfer have led to an abundance of abstract “creative” use cases being proposed; speed has begun to supersede quality.
That’s why on its 10th Anniversary, the arrival of London Craft Week is perhaps more poignant this year than it ever has been, shining the light on outstanding craftsmanship spanning multiple sectors and disciplines, across England’s capital city.
A mainstay during those 10 years, this year Rolls-Royce Cars have used the opportunity to celebrate the in-house expertise that has seen them set the standard for luxury craftsmanship. Much like the meticulous paintwork on a Rolls-Royce Phantom, the story of London Craft Week is a multi-layered one, building on each iteration, and enabling ever-more makers to tell their stories in beautiful ways each year.
With London as their inspiration, Rolls-Royce artisans have curated a three-piece showcase for London Craft Week, utilising many of the skills enjoyed by their knowledgeable customer base.
“Appropriately for this tenth edition of London Craft Week, the UK’s capital city has acted as inspiration for these magnificent works of craftsmanship, which celebrate London’s world-famous status as a luxury hub, as well as its rich tapestry of architecture, art, design, and culture. These exquisite examples of creativity and ingenuity will be on display at our flagship showroom in the heart of Mayfair for the duration of the event in May.”
— Boris Weletzky, Regional Director – UK, Europe & Central Asia, Rolls-Royce Motor Cars
Comprising of the London Bonnet, London Icons Door Card and Picnic Table, each piece in the collection captures both the modern and traditional culture of London, using different techniques to integrate famous landmarks onto familiar Rolls-Royce surfaces.
The pinnacle of the collection is the London Bonnet, featuring twenty layers of paint and over one-hundred hours of work by experts from the marque’s Exterior Surface Centre. First the bonnet is covered in a base coat of Andalusian White after which a crystal clearcoat is applied, and a map of London sketched by a single artisan over the entire surface. Using a gradient technique, the bonnet is then air brushed, giving it a visual depth that belies its reality. And thus the process proceeds, with each layer adding either another famous landmark or more finesse, all leading up to the final addition—the word “LONDON” sign-written by their Coachline artisan, and finished off with gold-leaf highlights.
The beauty of London Craft Week is that it allows true artisans to showcase their skill and painstakingly learned expertise, rewarding the traditional romantics—such as myself—whilst reminding the futurists that advancement should not be at the expense of what came before. The respect to artistry shown by Rolls-Royce, and exhibited throughout London Craft Week, gives me confidence that, in the right hands, technological progression can not only be harmonious, but artisanal too.
These three special pieces will be exhibited from the 13th to 19th May 2024, in the window of the Rolls-Royce flagship showroom on Berkeley Street, Mayfair.
