Massimo Bottura Moves From Slow Food to Fast Cars with Maserati.

 

The Italian Michelin-starred chef spent my youth watching his brother's race cars on an open track. Just beyond'sbeyond's ancient gates, as their vehicles flung mud up above their tires, he grew fascinated with speed and its expression. Earth resulting from power became a concept he rummaged over for years. Recently, that image, coupled with paintings by Damien Hirst, influenced his vision for a Levante Trofeo car he designed with.

Bottura caused the Maserati Fuoriserie customization program to express his memories and the energy of contemporary art artistically for the tailor-made model. The result is just a four-wheel-drive, 580-horsepower slice of speed, with a blue exterior featuring vibrant splashes of colour across its sides rather than mud. Whitewall spoke with Bottura about how growing up in Motor Valley moved him and how he and Maserati honour heritage, preservation, and craftsmanship.

WHITEWALL: You mentioned this car could be an expression of who you are. How so?

MASSIMO BOTTURA: There are lots of references and metaphors. The initial ones are "mud as speed" and "colour as culture." My first idea was a vehicle painted in mud to exhibit how hard this car can be driven. It'sIt's not only a luxury car, polished and shiny, but is also a vehicle that should be conducted in the mud. Showing the dirt is approximately expressing the exhilaration of a vehicle rally, as well as the fantastic rally of life.

The streaks around the wheels express speed. The splashes of colour refer to the English artist Damien Hirst and his ability to bring out the wonder and joy of a kid and generally share that with others through his art. His group of spin paintings capture the sense of creating messes and getting dirty, but not with mud, colour and culture.

WW: Car details are an application of contemporary luxury. What do these creative elements represent of you?

MB: Creativity is defining how you see the world. I see the world as a whole like a kaleidoscope, mutating as I evolve and grow, constantly changing with me. The fluidity of the colour, the sense of movement, and the speed of time create who I am and how I consider the world. It is just a method of showing how I solve problems and cook. This car is approximately self-expression taken to a different level. Such as, for instance, a tattoo for all to see.

At the end of the afternoon, all this colour is approximately contaminated with one'sone's passions and identity. I like to have as dirty as my knees in culture and lose myself in the mixture of music, art, food, cars, and poetry that originates from daring to consider deep.

WW: What relationship would you see between cars and food?

MB: Modena is where the contradiction of slow food and fast cars comes from every day. I embrace this duality as a part of who I am, our culinary identity. Slow food is approximately the ageing process of a few of our most iconic artisanal products, like Parmigiano-Reggiano, prosciutto, and balsamic vinegar. The fast cars arena isn't only about the brands that have historically been made here in Modena but about the drive to innovate that came out of this little area, where the obsession for speed, dynamism, and breaking records became part of the collective DNA.

As a chef, both of these elements, slow and fast, come together in my kitchen. We respect ingredients and their culinary history but move them forward to see them from a modern viewpoint. Moving forward in the Italian kitchen has not been easy because no one wants it to alter, yet pushing the recipes into the future to provide them with more lot is what I do best.

WW: What does Maserati symbolize for you?

MB: Color. The blue body of the vehicle can be an ode to the blue liveries of the Maserati MC12 Stradale. When designing this Fuoriserie, I needed it to be this racing blue to keep in mind Maserati'sMaserati's glorious racing history because, for me, Maserati is approximately speed and elegance. It'sIt's the initial GranTurismo where two worlds came together to provide everyday drivers with the thrill of the racetrack. Craftsmanship. There'sThere's so much craftsmanship that pumps through the veins of Maserati—from the precision of the factory to the vehicle detailing. Everything has been considered and designed, expressing Italian craftsmanship, technical efficiency, and excellence.

And resilience. My nickname for this car could be the Rally of Monte Charlie. As kids, we were all crazy about the Rallye de Monte-Carlo because it was a mythic and dangerous race that took place through the night in the winter. There was often snow, so the twisting road from the top of the hill to the bay managed to get among the most challenging races ever. Our son, Carlo, also called Charlie, has unique needs. He is a young adult, and when I consider how tough it's been for him, I consider that race. He never gives up and pushes himself like me. In a way, this car can also be infused with his soulful spirit and determination. Instead of calling it Monte-Carlo, I call it Rally of Monte Charlie—not afraid to vary and win everything most of the same. And sound. Maserati cars have a sound like no other. If you can hear it, you're not driving it.

WW: If you might take your Levante Trofeo off-roading, where would it not be?

MB: Through the wheat fields of Casa Maria Luigia, our 12-room guest house in the Emilian countryside, moving in circles fast enough to kick up the dust of late August and create a thunderous vortex. Acting just as the kid I am.