Italian Masterpieces on Display at L.A.’s Petersen Automobile Museum; Here’s an Exclusive Behind-the-Ropes Photo Tour

Italian Masterpieces on Display at L.A.’s Petersen Automobile Museum; Here’s an Exclusive Behind-the-Ropes Photo Tour:

Should you find yourself in Los Angeles between now and next February, or if you’re itchin’ to make a trip out west and all you need is a reason, make the “Sculpture in Motion: Masterpieces in Italian Design” exhibit at the Petersen Automotive Museum a part of the itinerary. This extraordinary showcase currently features 17 cars of varying vintages ranging from a 1932 Ford cabriolet designed by Pininfarina (who knew?) to the unspeakably gorgeous 2009 Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione, including notable works by Ghia, Scaglietti, Bertone, Zagato, Italdesign, and more.
Your inner teenager will be mesmerized by the wacky, wedge-shaped 1970 Lancia Stratos Zero concept by Bertone with its bright orange paint, triangular engine cover, and one-piece BMW Isetta–style windshield/door—complete with ribbed rubber foot grip on the nose. In terms of significance, few vehicles in the world can compare with Pininfarina’s elegant 1947 Cisitalia 202 coupe, a car so beautiful it landed a parking spot in New York’s Museum of Modern Art. A mischievous-looking, banana-yellow Bertone-designed 1953 Stanguellini coupe is such a delight that it won last year’s Concorso Italiano in Carmel, California. And we would be remiss if we didn’t mention the majestic (and extraordinarily valuable) silver 1957 Ferrari 625/250 Testa Rossa.
While the Cisitalia and the Stratos will serve as anchor vehicles throughout the exhibit, others will be rotated out for other examples of Italian style. Petersen spokespeople declined to say which exact cars are on the way, however, other than to say that they also are “masterpieces.”
The gallery below shows the current crop of Italian artworks.

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