Desire, seduction, a feat of human engineering: fashion has a well-oiled relationship with fast cars. Twenty years since he released I Love Fast Cars, a tome capturing the raw power of the American muscle cars, fashion photographer Craig McDean has released a new book, Manual, published by Rizzoli. It documents McDean’s long lived passion for speed behind the wheel, including many previously unseen works from his personal archive, alongside his well-known fashion images, also revered for their energy, movement and momentum. Spliced together, Amber Valetta dressed in Yohji Yamamoto (A/W 2000) leans against a scarlet Camaro Sky, while naked Raquel Zimmerman (S/S 2017) languidly stretches along the base of a royal blue muscle car.
‘I grew up around cars, driving a Ford Cortina with my dad and watching films like Vanishing Point. Cars became an adventure and that stayed with me,’ says McDean, who worked as a mechanic for a year before picking up a camera. ‘As objects to photograph and desire, cars are the same as fashion and clothes to me,’ says McDean. ‘When I first moved to America I bought muscle cars, I lived my fantasy. Now I have Italian cars, I like looking at the lines of them and knowing they are hand built. And they don’t fall apart and go round corners a lot better!’
McDean has released the book with the support of with his friend Ben Gorham of Byredo, who designed 400 limited-edition yellow fabric box covers stamped with metal license plate tags, and a line of motoring-inspired merchandise that will be available to buy alongside the limited-edition book in global Byredo stores. Checking off the tropes of car culture merchandise – mechanics jacket, lighters, beer coolers, baseball caps and t-shirts – Gorham explains, ‘It’s less of a collection and more nostalgia you can wear, almost like memorabilia.’ McDean and Gorham bonded over cars a decade ago in Long Island when ‘Craig’s kids took my two year old daughter on a first date in an electric SUV up and down the lawn,’ recalls Gorham.
Which leaves only question. What is McDean’s car of choice to drive? ‘I was just in Milan and I took my Maserati Spyder out, it won the Turin Motor Show and it’s such a great car to drive.’ And for Gorham? ‘I just ordered the new electric Porshe last week. They call it the Tesla killer!’
INFORMATION
-
Audi launches AUDI, a China-only sub-brand, with a handsome new EV conceptThe AUDI E previews a new range of China-specific electric vehicles from the German carmaker’s new local sub-brand
-
Inside Izza Marrakech: A new riad where art and bohemian luxury meetHonouring the late Bill Willis’ hedonistic style, Izza Marrakech fuses traditional Moroccan craftsmanship with the best of contemporary art
-
Clocking on: the bedside analogue timepieces that won’t alarm your aestheticWe track down the only tick-tocks that matter, nine traditional alarm clocks that tell the time with minimum fuss and maximum visual impact
-
Two new books celebrate the art of automotive photography from very different angles‘Macchina’ collates photographer Jon Nicholson’s portfolio of modern motorsport imagery, while ‘Automotive Type D’ is INK studio’s fourth volume of car-focused creative briefs
-
Spectacular stations: a new book puts railway architecture back on the agenda‘Station’ takes us through the very best railway architecture of the past 120 years, a sound case for putting more effort into this most civilised forms of transport
-
80 years of BMW design in a monumental new book‘BMW: Behind the Scenes’ is billed as the ultimate book on the Bavarian carmaker’s aesthetic history
-
Peugeot’s sparky 308 gets hybrid power and handsome linesThe Peugeot 308 proves that mass-market design needn’t be dull, blending hybrid power with sharp lines and excellent detailing
-
BMW Motorrad brings out the big guns for its newest cruisersBMW Motorrad R 18 Bagger and Transcontinental set the tone for high-voltage cruising with a brand collaboration with speaker specialist Marshall
-
Dacia’s new Manifesto concept is a true outdoor utility vehicleUtilitarian auto brand Dacia sets a bold new agenda with its Manifesto, a concept car pitched at the active outdoor market
-
The sun sets on traditional supercars at California’s Monterey Car WeekMonterey Car Week, the world’s most prestigious car gathering, is showcasing ever-more extravagant special editions, coachbuilt cars and all-new electric concepts. Here are seven key machines from 2022
-
Is McLaren’s GT a sports car, a tourer, or the best of both?The McLaren GT is a capable all-rounder dressed up in svelte supercar clothes. It might also be the last of its type
