WORDS WITH the key voices in contemporary art, photography, design and architecture: Skira opens its doors and welcomes them, to discuss their works, projects, goals and dreams.
On the occasion of the launch of FERRARI DESIGN. CREATIVE JOURNEYS, enjoy a deep and heartfelt conversation between Catherine Castillon, Skira's CEO, and Flavio Manzoni, Chief Design Officer at Ferrari.
Questions asked in this interview
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0:43Can you tell us a bit about how a Ferrari design develops?
4:05How do you maintain a certain modernity without falling into vintage nostalgia?
5:27You mentioned 'technological epiphany' in the book?
Good morning. Today we are in Maranello, at the iconic Ferrari headquarters, with Flavio Manzoni, the director of the Ferrari Style Center, to present the book 'Creative Journeys' about the last 15 years of design.
I'm excited because it's a beautiful thing. It's a book that tells the story of this creative journey of these 16 years, and it's made with such an important publisher. I know many of their books, especially those linked to the great masters of art, so it's a great privilege.
It's a great privilege for me to do this video with you because personally, I think we are all totally fascinated by your craft and this balance you see between creativity and the performance and engineering side. Can you tell us a bit about how a Ferrari design develops?
Well, it's exactly this blend of two aspects, right? The artistic one and the so-called scientific, technical one. We must remember that when we talk about design, we are talking about applied art, especially on a Ferrari, because one of the most important characteristics of a Ferrari, besides performance and driving pleasure, is beauty. So, how do you align all the aspects that make a project, which in recent years has become increasingly complex from a technical point of view? But that's the beauty of it—we're not talking about pure art, we're talking about a beautiful fusion of different objectives.
I also have a technical background, so I've always had a passion for all aspects related to technology. Facing the feasibility aspects means ensuring that a form also embraces function, and in Ferrari's case, performance, while also being beautiful. It's an incredible challenge because every detail in the car must not only be beautiful but also serve a technical purpose.
We saw all these amazing prototypes we could look at, though unfortunately not film inside this facility. I was also very impressed by the unique models you make, the one-offs.
The one-off is a truly unique project because it involves designing a car in the true sense of the word, but for a single client. There are some here, by the way. It means 3 to 4 years of work, following the client's aspirations. Of course, we still have to guide them. We are talking about the highest level of personalization Ferrari offers, obviously to important collector clients who want to undertake this creative journey. It's not just about the beauty of these projects or the final output; it's the experience itself that is a creative experience. They have the pleasure of driving these cars, we have the pleasure of designing them, and in this case, the clients themselves are part of this process. It's a very intimate relationship.
Also on more iconic series, when you look back over the years, thinking for example of the Daytona. How do you maintain a certain modernity without falling into vintage nostalgia? There's a respect you must have for the past.
That's a more relevant question than ever because the problem of our times is a tendency towards nostalgia, which is exactly the opposite of what a creative should do. There's a beautiful quote from Erich Fromm that I included in my introduction: 'Creativity requires letting go of certainties.' It's a beautiful phrase because it means taking a journey towards the future, trying to understand how a brand's language can evolve, obviously without forgetting its roots. But let's never forget that creativity and innovation are fundamental aspects of design. If that is missing, it's no longer design.
