When Ferdinand Alexander Porsche entered the family business in 1958, he filled an unknown vacuum. An experimental visionary who wanted to challenge tradition, he elevated the design legacy of this famous German brand. From working in the engineering office to craftily creating an icon amongst sportscars, writer Ulf Porschardt reveals how Ferdinand Alexander’s sketches evolved to become a cultural symbol.
Count Goertz designed a prestigious, muscular sports car for the Zuffenhausen-based company that was more reminiscent of a Ferrari or a Maserati…
The Goertzian design was in love with the grand gesture. The same year Roland Barthes declared the car to be the equivalent of the great Gothic cathedrals, and in his popular and shamelessly cited work Mythologies, considered it a major creation of the epoch, passionately conceived by numerous nameless artists. In the style of pop art, Barthes enacted an intellectual and cultural upgrading of the automobile, without the hyper-modern pathos of the futurists.
The pass road over the Gotthard can only be described as breathtaking. The route from the canton of Uri to Ticino leads through the wild Schöllenen Gorge with its fabled Devil’s Bridge up to the top of the pass at 2,107 metres above sea level and over the cobblestoned Tremola Road with its 24 spine-tingling switchbacks down into Ticino.
Director: Andrew Schneider
Director of Photography: Mike Koziel
Photography: Jack Schroeder
Production: PorchHouse Pictures
This is the story of the first car to bear the Porsche name – The Type 64.
Developed 1939, the car survived war torn Germany to go on to be the baseline for one of the greatest modern auto manufacturers. To think it all started here, with this shape, and this engine layout, is remarkable.
We sat down with legendary filmmaker and founder of Radical Media, Jeff Zwart and Porsche Factory driver Patrick Long to find out more about the machine.
When Ferdinand Alexander Porsche entered the family business in 1958, he filled an unknown vacuum. An experimental visionary who wanted to challenge tradition, he elevated the design legacy of this famous German brand. From working in the engineering office to craftily creating an icon amongst sportscars, writer Ulf Porschardt reveals how Ferdinand Alexander’s sketches evolved to become a cultural symbol.
Boomers Daily 