April 4, 2014
Jaguar F-type
Jaguar North America has teamed up with The Peterson Automotive Foundation Museum, Los Angeles, to bring forth an exhibit celebrating the world's best sports coupes.
The "World's Best Sports Coupes" exhibit is curated by a range of car collectors, designers, rock stars, actors and race car drivers and will presumably showcase some of the rarest luxury vehicles. As the release date of Jaguar's F-Type Coupe approaches, the brand will be doing everything it can to sustain the buzz that peaked during the Super Bowl.
"The Exhibition is meant to celebrate breakthrough automobiles in the form of the two seat hard top coupe, upon the launch of our new Jaguar F-Type Coupe. We are eager to help the Petersen showcase this genre of automobile and kick off the launch of our own great coupe," said Stuart Schorr, vice president of public relations and consumer affairs at Jaguar Land Rover North America, Mahwah, NJ.
Best of the best
The exhibit enters thorny territory with its mission of choosing "the best two-seat, fixed-roof high performance car of all time."
To quell potential critics, the museum enlisted twelve curators from various realms to underscore the subjectivity of the event.
The curators include actor Patrick Dempsey, Metallica front man James Hetfield, comedian Adam Carolla, Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason, AC/DC front man Brian Johnson, film director Francis Ford Coppola, Motor Trend magazine's editor Angus MacKenzie, American racer Bobby Rahal, two-time Oscar winner John Lasseter, car collector Bruce Meyer, Jaguar's director of Design Ian Callum and the Top Gear USA Hosts Tanner Foust, Adam Ferrara and Rutledge Wood.
Video still of Fracis Coppola
The Peterson Museum will unveil the car choices when the exhibition opens.
A teaser video shows the curators discussing the exhibit's theme.
The World's Greatest Sports Coupes Preview
Jaguar is asking fans to weigh in on the best sports coupe of all time discussion on social media by using the hashtags #ThePetersen and #GreatestCoupes.
The automaker has made others splashes in Los Angeles in recent weeks.
For instance, Jaguar committed a one-year $130,000 grant to L.A.-based P.S. Arts to help the nonprofit expand its program capabilities and the number of children it reaches (see story).
On display
A major part of being an auto enthusiast calls for admiring vehicles from afar. Consequently, museums and other venues showcase rare vehicles all the time.
For instance, British automakers Aston Martin and Rolls-Royce are currently featured in the “Bond in Motion” exhibit at the London Film Museum, commemorating the James Bond franchise that has boosted the prestige of many auto brands.
The 1964 Aston Martin DB5 from “Goldeneye” and Goldfinger’s Rolls-Royce Phantom III are among the vehicles on display. For luxury brands focused on touting heritage, recognition by independent museums acts as a rite of passage (see story).
Also, The North Carolina Museum of Art in Raleigh, NC, celebrated German automaker Porsche’s innovations throughout the years with an exhibition that showcased 22 quintessential models.
The “Porsche by Design: Seducing Speed” exhibition gave visitors a well-researched look at Porsche’s origins and its development. Teaming rare Porsche models with comprehensive multimedia displays likely brought together car enthusiasts and history buffs (see story).
In many cases, the museum will bring in outside consultation.
"Guest curators were chosen by the Petersen based upon their automotive expertise, passion and enthusiasm and each were allowed to curate one car for The World’s Greatest Sports Coupes exhibit," said Nicole Redding, client services director at ASG Renaissance, Orange County, CA.
Final Take
Joe McCarthy, editorial assistant on Luxury Daily, New York
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