WORDS: NATHAN CHADWICK | PHOTOS: LOPRESTO COLLECTION
Corrado Lopresto, one of Europe’s leading classic car collectors, has brought together a collection of his vehicles at Milan’s ADI Design Museum, to celebrate not only Italian design but also the artisanship of the classic restoration process.
The exhibition features unique cars from the 1940s to the 1980s, incorporating early post-war models as well as 1970s and 1980s prototypes
Arranged in collaboration with the Accademia di Belle Arti Aldo Galli-IED Network of Como, the exhibition (entitled La Collezione Lopresto – Storia Del Car Design e Restaurant Dell’automobile d’Epoca), runs from January 11 to January 29, 2024, and features unique cars from the 1940s to the 1980s, incorporating early post-war models as well as 1970s and 1980s prototypes. During the exhibition, Accademia Galli restoration students will get to work revitalising a Savio-bodied 1962 Fiat 2100, while visitors can observe the process. The finished car will be unveiled on January 29.
The six display cars include three very special Alfa Romeos. The first is the one-of-one 1942 2500 SS Bertone; the work of famed stylist Mario Revelli, it was built on a pre-war racing chassis for Scuderia Milan. There’s also a chance to see a 1961 Giulietta SZ Zagato designed by Ercole Spada according to Kamm design theories, which was awarded by UNESCO for its conservative restoration in 2016, plus the second official prototype of the Montreal, which starred at the 1970 Geneva Motor Show.
With the Lancia brand on the rise again, the exhibition provides an opportunity to take in a milestone of Italian design, the 1955 Lancia Florida Pinin Farina (pictured above), a prototype of the Flaminia built on an Aurelia frame, which revolutionised Italian design with its tense and angular lines. There’s also a chance to see one of two OSCA 1600 GTs bodied by Touring, which features innovative patents such as a concave rear window and a removable spare wheel in the passenger door, and the one-off 1990 Fiat Panda Scioneri. Built on a Panda 75S base, it’s covered in fabric with custom details, and it made its debut at the Turin Salone the same year.
The exhibition runs until January 29, 2024 and admission is free. More details are available here.
