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Love him or hate him, it’s hard to deny that Virgil Abloh is one of the preeminent cultural trendsetters of the 21st century.
The designer, entrepreneur, DJ, creative director of Louis Vuitton, founder of Off-White and compatriot of Kanye West has a great influence on modern popular culture. Its signature deconstructed style and highly industrial aesthetic, one of the most recognizable design languages of the 21st century, has manifested itself in clothing, accessories, furniture, artwork, music, and even bottled water. Abloh is prolific, with more collaborations under his belt than perhaps any other artist active today.
However, he is a divisive figure. Legions of hypebeasts revere him as a god, his footwear collaborations with Nike and collections with LV enjoy unprecedented success. Others consider its minimalist design language, and its self-imposed rule of ‘only alter something by 3%’, as derivative, overrated, unimaginative or simple plagiarism.
Abloh’s latest work has seen him team up with Mercedes-Benz Design Director Gorden Wagener on a one-off edition of the G63 (aka the ‘G-Wagen’) which they have dubbed ‘Project Geländewagen’: a conceptual design project that is an exercise in “studying what luxury will look like in 100 years,” according to the couple.
The two have transformed the SUV into something of a postmodern race car, with a boxy and incongruous body kit; NASCAR-style tires, window nets and roll cage; a stripped interior and a partially sanded paint job. It somehow evokes the works of fellow American artist Tom Sachs. But that would do Sachs a disservice because we, like many others on the Internet, found this “art car” absurdly ugly.
But what we think is irrelevant.
Ted Gushue – photographer, highly respected automotive journalist and founder of Type7 – relates that the Geländewagen Project (gelände = off-road in German, hence ‘G-Wagen’) is not intended for car fans or ‘adults’. Indeed, it is a smart move for Mercedes to appeal to a younger generation of consumers.
“The collaboration between Virgil Abloh and Mercedes-Benz is not for me or for many of you,” says Gushue.
“But its purpose is to act as a ‘Trojan horse’ to get a whole generation of children living in cities who have never thought about cars or car design interested and involved.”
“The auto industry has a big problem on its immediate horizon in the next 20 years as we move increasingly toward a car-free society. Children who are now looking at a red brick that says Supreme should begin to channel their energy into automotive design and culture. If they don’t, we’re screwed. “
In this way, the Geländewagen Project is a stroke of genius.
It’s hard to overstate Abloh’s influence on so many aspects of popular culture. Your co-signature pretty much guarantees success … Or at least your eyes. Hell, we’re writing about it, so Mercedes’ strategy is clearly working. People who weren’t interested in cars before will start paying attention now thanks to Virgil’s ‘Midas touch’. On the contrary, there will be another subset of people who don’t care about art / design / haute couture It will be to Google Abloh’s name thanks to this collaboration.
As the first African American to head the creative direction of a French luxury brand, which in just a few short years has risen to the top of the modern art world, Abloh’s journey and creativity are inspiring. Consumers of all backgrounds who have never seen themselves as existing even in the same universe as, say, German luxury cars now have a rolling monument to what the future holds.
Art or automotive purists may scoff at the Geländewagen Project, but there is no doubt that its legacy will be deeply felt for years to come.
Abloh isn’t the only trendsetter to collaborate on a luxury vehicle like this. New York-based artist Daniel Arsham, who has collaborations with Adidas, Christian Dior and Nintendo also under his belt, collaborated with Porsche on the ‘Porsche 3019’ – a fully drivable 992 coupe with stone body panels with Arsham’s ‘eroded’ glass artwork. .
That said, Abloh’s cultural cache extends a lot to Arsham’s.
Two Project Geländewagen cars have been manufactured: a full-size, supposedly functional version, and a 1/3 scale version to be auctioned at Sotheby’s in support of Virgil Abloh’s “Post-Modern” Scholarship Fund for Black Students in the Arts. . It’s an easy bet that you’ll get a penny once you go under the hammer.
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