Just because we can't get a straight answer on when or even if the Lexus LF-A will hit the streets, doesn't mean Lexus' parent Toyota doesn't want to get the most out of the design. Lexus will participate in the 2009 Milan Design Week by brining a exhibit titled, “Lexus L-finesse - crystallised wind” - featuring the LF-A.
While the real car is made out of carbon fiber and other composites, what will be seen in Milan will mostly be acrylic. But the appearnce of this artwork does give us new hope for an LF-A for the streets.
In the press release from Lexus, it does mention the 500+ hp 5.0-liter V10 engine (as well of a top speed around 200 mph). This is good news because it suggests that Lexus is once again serious about giving the public its long-awaited supercar.
Press release after the jump
Press release
Following its successful participation in previous years, Lexus will be returning to the 2009 Milan Design Week with an art exhibition entitled ‘Lexus L-finesse - crystallised wind -’ , a combination of Lexus L-Finesse design philosophy and the very finest in contemporary art, architecture and design elements from Japan.
The exhibition will take place in Milan’s Museo della Permanente art gallery, from April 22nd to 26th , as part of the world’s largest design exhibition, the Salone del Mobile di Milano.
Sou Fujimoto, a ground-breaking Japanese architect, will re-interpret the ambivalence of the Lexus design philosophy ‘L-finesse’ through a dynamic installation that combines unity in space, sound and lighting.
“Crystallised wind is the result of a conceptual interpretation of the underlying principles of Lfinesse design”, explains Sou Fujimoto. “The term wind addresses not only the flow of wind, but also symbolises a flow or current in a greater sense. It is a new horizon where the natural and the artificial coexist in space. I wanted to find a way to give form to that which is formless: to take the flow of air and the passing of time and to represent them in such a way as to explain the essence of the duality of L-finesse. The result is an art form that represents movement yet stillness, and the flow of time in a timeless environment.”
The Lexus space will display an acrylic art piece based on the full-size concept car model, the Lexus super sports concept car, the LF-A as well as a specially designed piece of furniture constructed from acrylic.
Lexus has participated in the Milan Design Week since 2005 based on the conviction that pursuing the L-finesse message through different artists and fields brings new standards and transcends conventional ideas. This year marks the Lexus participation in this event where traditions and innovations of designs cross each other.
“L-finesse design is much more than a surface approach and is certainly not confined to automotive design, we are trying to look much deeper than that, we use the Japanese influence in that way.” Said Wahei Hirai, Managing Officer of Design Center, “That is also why we like to collaborate with leading artists and designers instead of just working with our own automotive designers. This way, we inspire each other and we can go much more in depth. However, even if we keep the same consistency at the same time we change the way we represent our design
philosophy over the time.”
Design & Art Exhibition Details:
Lexus L-finesse ‘- crystallised wind -’
Address: Museo della Permanente,
Via Filippo Turati 34, 20,121 Milan
Dates: April 22ndtill 26th , 2009
Press preview and opening reception on April, the 21st
Exhibited works:
1. Machined and moulded acrylic model based on the Lexus LF-A, an ultra-high performance
sports concept car designed by Lexus
2. Furniture piece specially designed for Lexus and made from acrylic
Artist Profile : Sou Fujimoto
Sou Fujimoto was born in Hokkaido in 1971. He studied architecture at the Engineering School of Tokyo University
before founding Sou Fujimoto Architects in 2000. Recognised by the AR Awards for Emerging Young Architects in 2005 and 2006, he was awarded the Grand Prize in 2007, and himself became a jury member in 2008.
Several further awards have contributed to the burgeoning international recognition of Sou Fujimoto’s work: in 2008, he won both the JIA Architecture Grand Prize and the World Architecture Festival Private House Category. He has been elected to the Design Vanguard by the international journal Architectural Record, and recently received the Wallpaper magazine 2009 Design Award. Sou Fujimoto’s own, 2008 publication, Primitive Future, has been widely recognised for its contribution to the fields of architecture and design.
L-finesse Design
L-finesse is an acronym of “Leading-edge” and “finesse”, two factors that define both the history, and future of the Lexus brand. Drawing from Japanese aesthetic values, L-finesse creates a unique dynamism based on the visual contrast between the purity of simplicity and the depth of “intriguing elegance”. Seamless anticipation, a major facet of L-Finesse, also adds a sense of individual presence to all Lexus design, by creating a personal and individual experience for each and every customer.
LF-A high-performance concept car
Combining the cutting-edge technology and the outstanding driving dynamics of a two-seat sportscar, the LF-A concept car is more than merely a radical statement of supercar performance. Incorporating the very latest developments in high-performance engineering technology, with the core values of the Lfinesse design philosophy, the LF-A redefines the boundaries of the ultra-high performance sportscar landscape. With a chassis and bodywork made out of carbon fibre and aluminium, the LF-A also features a lightweight, all-alloy V10 powerplant capable of developing more that 500 DIN hp from a cubic capacity of less than 5.0 litres. Allied to optimum gearing, weight and aerodynamics, the drivetrain is designed to afford the vehicle a maximum speed in excess of 320 km/h. The V10’s front mid engine placement, along with a rear-mounted transmission and rear-mounted radiators, allows for perfect front/rear weight distribution.