The DAF Museum dedicates an exhibition to the Italian designer Giovanni Michelotti. The designer was of great importance for the appearance of DAF’s passenger cars.
Michelotti designed more than 1,200 cars for Alfa Romeo, BMW and Fiat, among others. For DAF, the Italian designed the DAF 44, the first DAF car to be produced in Born, in the factory where VDL subsidiary NedCar is now located.
“Michelotti has been enormously decisive for the appearance of the passenger car”, Geert Vermeer, chairman of the DAF Museum, says. “He not only was important for DAF, but for the whole car industry. He is one of the most important Italian car designers. That’s why the great thing about the exhibition is the amount of sketches we can show of what eventually became the DAF 44, but he also laid the first hands on the DAF 77, which eventually became the Volvo 343”, Vermeer says.
Glass surface
Vermeer is clear about what made Michelotti stand out. “The DAF 44 is one of the first cars that did not have a grill at the front. It did have a grill, but it was under the bumper. Moreover, it was one of the cars with the largest surface area of glass in its time. All in all, it is a timeless design. It is an old car, of course, but it is not old-fashioned”, Vermeer says.
There is also another special feature to the exhibition, according to Vermeer. “It is the first time that cars are exhibited that are not made by DAF, which is unique for us”, Vermeer says.
The exhibition starts on Saturday 16 October, 100 years after Michelotti’s birthday. His son Edgardo Michelotti will be present at the opening of the exhibition.
Source: www.studio040.nl
Translated by: Bob
