Rolls-Royce has selected ten outstanding examples from its bespoke models unveiled in 2022.
Last year, the Rolls-Royce Bespoke division achieved its highest order value ever, marking the most successful year in the brand’s 118-year history. The Rolls-Royce Bespoke Collective, composed of designers, engineers, and artisans from Goodwood, created masterpieces that resonate with customers’ tastes and emotions, rooted in a philosophy of luxury and unparalleled craftsmanship.
Torsten Müller-Ötvös, CEO of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, stated, “Rolls-Royce has reaffirmed its position as a true luxury house with a landmark year, generating the highest bespoke order value ever. Bespoke is truly Rolls-Royce itself, and to prove this, the Goodwood Bespoke Collective continually pursues perfection, pushing the boundaries of craftsmanship, materials, and technology.”
Every Rolls-Royce crafted by hand at Goodwood reflects each customer’s request, making it a bespoke work of art. Ordering a Rolls-Royce is not just an act of extreme individuality but also a process of realizing one’s intimate preferences. Customers drew inspiration from the mysteries of the aurora, the iridescent elegance of pearls, and the latest fashion trends, which became the sources of inspiration for bespoke projects.
The ten exemplary models introduced below demonstrate the bespoke craftsmanship and serve as testament to Rolls-Royce’s stature as a true luxury house.
‘Phantom The Six Elements’ is the first bespoke series born from a collaboration with a world-renowned artist, based on a total of six Phantom Extended Series II vehicles. The gallery that decorates the interior fascia features works directly painted by the acclaimed contemporary British artist, Sasha Jafari.
Each Phantom includes six pieces of art specially created by Sasha Jafari for this project, inspired by the five elements of nature: earth, water, fire, wind, and air, along with the sixth element, ‘humanity.’ Through this project, Rolls-Royce raised $1.2 million in charitable donations, with the unique NFT artworks included in each Phantom carrying the special significance of being ‘the giving Rolls-Royce.’
Based on two race models, the ‘Aurora Borealis Race’ was inspired by the breathtaking spectacle of the aurora, capturing the essence of nature’s light display. The Bespoke Collective developed a new exterior color to embody the subtle glow of the aurora. Two colors, named Aurora Blue and Borealis Green, convey the rainbow-hued beauty of the polar night.
The interiors of each vehicle feature various starlight headliners in diverse colors, including star constellations made from blue, green, and white fiber optics. It took considerable time to perfectly arrange the lighting that evokes the enchanting beauty of the aurora.
‘Phantom Paisley Gallery’ showcases a beautiful stitch artwork that reinterprets the paisley motif, which has adorned luxury items for centuries. This piece was handcrafted using navy blue, Arctic white, and forge yellow threads, completed with an astounding 90,000 stitches. Combining run stitching and satin edging, it brought unique textures to life, taking more than 40 hours to complete the stitching work. The gallery sections seamlessly merge three color elements, perfectly placed to the millimeter.
‘Cullinan Frozen Lake’ invites passengers into a magical atmosphere reminiscent of a winter wonderland. The fascia and picnic table are meticulously hand-painted, inspired by cracked ice patterns. After applying various colors in multiple layers, coating and gloss enhancements were added for a three-dimensional effect, a process that took over two weeks. The bespoke starlight headliner emitted similar effects, requiring 18 hours to complete.
The vehicle exterior is painted to reflect the clarity, sparkle, and depth of ice surfaces, coated in sparkling crystal over midnight sapphire and blue crystal over Arctic colors.
‘Phantom Sapphire Astrum’ features a beautiful gallery inspired by the moment of a star explosion. Utilizing sterling silver material, it expresses the light beams emanating from diamonds set over platinum, with pear-cut sapphires adorning the ends of each beam.
The background enhances the brilliant gemstone colors with a deep layer of blue de nuit sapphire lacquer, featuring guilloché patterns that are widely used in high-end watchmaking and jewelry creation. The sterling silver trim of the gallery clock is also adorned with guilloché patterns, while the sapphire blue lacquer overlay adds depth and iridescence to the clock face.
‘Pebble Beach Collection Ghost’ created by the Rolls-Royce Bespoke Collective for the Monterey Car Week exhibition features a shimmering finish with crystal over Sagano green and gold mica flakes on sequoia green, highlighting its rainbow-colored allure.
The astonishing depth of the exterior color is achieved through a painstaking six-layer paint process. After a crystal finish composed of fine color particles, two clear coats are applied to create a lustrous and shiny appearance.
The one-of-a-kind Phantom Orchid is inspired by the Singapore orchid symbolizing ‘beauty, recovery, and strength.’ At the center of the Phantom Orchid resides a gallery handcrafted by British artist and textile designer ‘Helen Amy Murray,’ featuring a three-dimensional flower blooming within crafted entirely from silk.
The rear picnic table and door plates also boast inlaid designs inspired by orchids. The exterior finish, a Singapore Orchid Pearl White paint enriched with violet hues and glass granules, creates a beautiful pearlescent effect. Additionally, the coach line depicting the orchid further accentuates the exterior’s allure.
The radiant bespoke ‘Puck’s Bright Yellow Dawn’ is a model specially ordered by Michael Puck, an automotive collector and long-time customer of Rolls-Royce. The color Puck’s Bright Yellow, created exclusively for Michael Puck, is applied across all aspects of the vehicle, including exterior paint, interior trim, top stitching, a two-tone steering wheel, and color wheel center, and has received much acclaim.
‘Phantom Platino,’ named for its platinum white finish, features interiors crafted from two fabric types. The lavish and luxurious fabric produced in an Italian wool mill decorates various focal points within the passenger area, while fine and resilient bamboo fibers applied to the lower space of the interior endure pressure.
The Bespoke Collective has drawn abstract repetitive patterns inspired by the statue of the goddess of joy on both materials, which is also reflected in the gallery. The ‘stars’ of the one-of-a-kind starlight headliner are arranged to redirect attention toward the rear, while shooting stars follow the fabric pattern.
The bespoke collection ‘Cullinan Inspired by Fashion’ consists of four vehicles in two sets reflecting various aspects of high fashion. The bold ‘Rebel’ collection allows for color selections from lime green, gunmetal, wildberry, and Arctic White for the exterior color, with lime green or peony pink point colors for the interior. The ‘Fusion’ collection features options for exterior colors like military green, burnout gray, forge yellow, or tempest gray, complemented by mandarin or forge yellow point colors within the interior.
Additionally, the Cullinan Inspired by Fashion introduces the ‘Starlight Tailgate.’ The Starlight Tailgate extends the stunning starlit ceiling effect not only to the vehicle’s roof but also to the trunk. It incorporates 192 stars gently glowing through perforated leather, allowing one to enjoy the enchanting beauty of a starry night anytime, anywhere.
Jin-Soo Lee daedusj@autodiary.kr