- Italian sports and luxury car creator Automobili Pininfarina to support British Library’s landmark ‘Leonardo da Vinci: A Mind in Motion’ exhibition from 7 th June – 8 th September
- Unique version of innovative pure-electric Battista hypercar to be presented in grounds of British Library from 7 th – 9 th June
- Paolo Pininfarina presents the spirit of innovation that made Battista ‘Pinin’ Farina one of the most celebrated automotive designers in history: https://youtu.be/6k3R91nj7yQ
- Battista images available
(London, 29th May 2019): Marking the 500th anniversary of the death of Leonardo da Vinci, the British Library’s ‘Leonardo da Vinci: A Mind in Motion’ exhibition brings together highlights from three of his remarkable Codex notebooks for the first time ever in the UK. The exhibition celebrates and reveals the inner workings of Leonardo’s complex mind and his fascination with motion – which he considered to be “the cause of all life”.
As the presenting partner for this incredible celebration of engineering and design innovation, Automobili Pininfarina is to exhibit the 1,900 hp, zero-emissions Battista hypercar, on general public display in the UK for the first time. The beautiful Battista in a unique exterior finish will feature in a bespoke enclosure in the British Library’s main Piazza from 7 th – 9 th June.
The Italian-designed hypercar is set to redefine automotive motion, becoming the most powerful car ever produced in Italy, at the home of Pininfarina in Cambiano, near Turin. From late 2020 the famous Italian Carrozzeria will hand-build no more than 150 editions of the Battista that has been designed by Automobili Pininfarina’s Luca Borgogno.
The inspiration that connects 500 years of Italian design mastery
Leonardo’s codices reveal the concepts and innovations in design that formed the inspiration behind his ideas and the engineering solutions to much of his design work. Core to his inventions were the seamless integration of form and function, and the blurring of lines between art, design and engineering: principles for which Pininfarina S.p.A. has become renowned in its almost 90-year history.
Pininfarina S.p.A. has been commissioned by the world’s newest luxury car brand, Automobili Pininfarina, to design and hand-build the Battista to a challenging design brief from Design Director Luca Borgogno. His challenge is for the Battista to be aesthetically beautiful, unprecedented in its performance and pure in its output, with classic supercar proportions, acceleration faster than a Formula 1 car, and a 300-mile electric range on a single charge.
Luca Borgogno said: “We are proud to be a part of the ‘Leonardo da Vinci: A Mind in Motion’ exhibition because we are proud of what Italian design has brought to the world. Leonardo was a true Italian genius, the first person to combine the disciplines of art, design and engineering – and from Leonardo in the 16th Century to Pininfarina in 2019, these principles remain strong.
“Italy is defined by design classics, whether that is Leonardo’s work, Palladio’s Teatro Olimpico in Vicenza, Pininfarina’s Cisitalia 202 or Mattè-Trucco’s car factory in Lingotto. The common theme between them is that they presented modern, elegant, innovative functions and design in perfect harmony for the first time. The Battista design brief is a breath-taking expression of this tradition.”
It is anticipated that only 50 of the 150 Battistas will be available for the European market and this extraordinary electric luxury hypercar is now available to order from H.R. Owen and Rybrook, two of the UK’s leading luxury car retailers. Potential customers are invited to apply to own a Battista now using an online service within the company’s website
Editor’s notes
Automobili Pininfarina and the Battista
Automobili Pininfarina will offer a range of pure-electric luxury cars from late 2020. The first, the Battista, takes the name of Battista ‘Pinin’ Farina, the founder of Pininfarina, the Italian automotive styling house he began in 1939. It will be designed and hand-crafted under contract by Pininfarina S.p.A. in Cambiano, Italy.
The British Library
The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom and one of the world''s greatest research libraries. It provides world class information services to the academic, business, research and scientific communities and offers unparalleled access to the world''s largest and most comprehensive research collection. The Library''s collection has developed over 250 years and exceeds 150 million separate items representing every age of written civilisation and includes books, journals, manuscripts, maps, stamps, music, patents, photographs, newspapers and sound recordings in all written and spoken languages. Up to 10 million people visit the British Library website - www.bl.uk - every year where they can view up to 4 million digitised collection items and over 40 million pages.
