As one of the world’s most opulent luxury cars, the Rolls-Royce Phantom is adjacent to the world of art.
The Rolls-Royce Phantom is one of the most celebrated ultra-luxury cars in the world. What with its timelessly elegant design, uncompromising luxury features, iconic V12 engine, and a century of history behind its nameplate, the 100th anniversary of the Rolls-Royce Phantom nameplate, which is being celebrated this year, includes celebrating its status as one of the world’s most desirable luxury vehicles for an entire century, and an icon of the pop culture and art worlds.
Specifically in the art universe, Rolls-Royce, and specifically the Phantom, have been adjacent to contemporary art and artists since the beginning. Artists like Salvador Dalí, Andy Warhol, Henri Matisse, Pablo Picasso, Christian ‘Bébé’ Bérard and Cecil Beaton were famously driven in Rolls-Royce cars. Dame Laura Knight used a Rolls-Royce as a mobile studio to paint in, and art collectors like Jacquelyn de Rothschild, Peggy Guggenheim and Nelson Rockefeller were also near and dear to the Rolls-Royce brand.
The Phantom specifically has been owned and used by some of the world’s favorite creatives, its luxury and iconic design even making it a canvas for art itself, with the car being put on display at museums and galleries around the world. Salvador Dalí famously borrowed a friend’s Phantom, filling it with cauliflower for an artistic display, and also depicted a frozen Phantom as part of an illustrated book, Les Chants de Maldoror.
Andy Warhol owned a Rolls-Royce Phantom, a 1937 model that was purchased in Zurich. Charles Sykes, however, is one of the most important artists to Rolls-Royce, being the designer of the original Spirit of Ecstasy, an emblem that remains a part of Rolls-Royce’s legacy today. Until 1948, Sykes himself, and his daughter after, personally supervised the production of the Spirit of Ecstasy ornaments. Rolls-Royce is also celebrating the Phantom’s connection to art with new original artworks being commissioned to celebrate the rich history the ultra-luxury car has with art and artists, a fitting celebration for a car that has served as a muse, an inspiration, and a canvas for some of the world’s greatest artists.
Image Source: Rolls-Royce