since 1976
since 1976
From Rolls-Royce Press Release
The Rolls-Royce Bespoke Collective of designers, engineers and craftspeople is dedicated to advancing the discipline of craft itself, developing techniques that expand the ways clients can express themselves through the surfaces of the motor car. Driven by this pursuit, Rolls-Royce Motor Cars unveils four new craft techniques inspired by historical craftsmanship: 3D leather hand-sculpting, 3D metal hand-sculpting, 3D veneers and beadwork application. To showcase the potential of these innovations, they are presented in two works built at the scale of a Phantom Gallery – concept pieces that translate the techniques into a finished form.
Leather and Thread in Three Dimensions
The composition named ‘Legacy Craft: Inspired by Still Life’ draws inspiration from the nature morte paintings of the 17th-century Dutch Golden Age – a style developed to display the skill of the artist through the exploration of texture and the play of light across natural forms – and the embroidery traditions revived by the Arts and Crafts movement.
Across the length of the Gallery, Interior Trim Centre artisans composed a still-life arrangement of fruit and flowers, recalling 17th-century art in a three-dimensional form using a combination of materials, textures and contemporary craft techniques.
The Gallery debuts the first application of 3D leather sculpting and beadwork. The hydrangeas are constructed from 50 individual flowers, each hand-sculpted from leather and painted by hand. After studying the texture and quality of natural flowers, the artist painted each petal with a fine brush in tones of pink that gradually deepen toward the centre of each bloom. Floral twine is used to shape and secure the flowers to the Gallery surface. Their leaves are formed entirely from thread using a newly developed style – Sphinx Moth 3D embroidery – introducing a uniquely tactile dimension.
The pomegranates are embroidered using the alternate stitch technique, with 76 jewel-like beads individually hand-sewn to form the seeds that replicate the ruby translucence of the real fruit. More than 250 hours of handwork were required to complete the Gallery.
A broad colour palette is central to the Gallery’s impact; rich, deep tones have been chosen to maintain focus on the subject matter. Peony, Cocoa, and Chartreuse have been used for the flowers.
Sculpting Metal by Hand
The artwork named ‘Legacy Craft: Inspired by The Draught’ is created by specialists from the Interior Surface Centre and brings together 3D metal hand-sculpting and layered 3D veneer with brass elements.
Conceived as a piece of fine jewellery, it draws on four historical references: the draught – the technical drawing a craftsman uses to guide architectural work; scribing – the act of marking a surface to guide cutting and carving; strapwork – the interlaced, band-like motif of Elizabethan and Jacobean ornament; and ferramenta – the ironwork support grid used to retain stained glass.
The 3D veneer uses multiple layers of laser-cut wood to create a complex, faceted relief, finished with brass inserts that catch the light like haute joaillerie. The composition reads from left to right as a journey from initial design to finished sculpture, culminating in a three-dimensional, jewellery-like flower. On the left side of the Gallery, the patterns laser-etched onto smoked Eucalyptus wood represent the maker’s plan – the draught. The etched design then transitions into 3D marquetry, marking the journey from drawing to object. The piece then becomes increasingly sculptural. A delicate brass lattice, inspired by strapwork and the ferramenta of stained-glass windows, is applied over the veneer and completed with subtle laser engraving for additional texture.
The centre point is a jewel-like flower, formed from five layers of brass, each cut into petal shapes using an advanced waterjet. This detail alone required over 45 hours to complete. Before assembly, each petal is hand-engraved with over 50 lines – each just 0.2 mm wide – and shaped using specially modified tools, a technique developed in-house by Rolls-Royce craftspeople.
Hand and Machine, in One Composition
Both artworks have been developed around a single design philosophy: that hand and machine craftsmanship are most powerful when they work in concert. Laser cutting, waterjet shaping and digital pattern drafting are used to achieve geometries that no hand could repeat with the same accuracy. Hand-engraving, hand-painting, hand-embroidery and hand-sculpting are then applied to give the work its individual character.
The techniques introduced on these two Galleries have been developed as part of Rolls-Royce’s wider programme of bespoke craft research and exploration of new materials and techniques.
