"Our industrial design collection is pretty wide-ranging. The philosophy behind the collection is that the objects included are well-designed, functional and mass-produced; a fork, a knife, a chair, the tools that we use. Cars are an obvious example of this. I think automobiles are perhaps the most significant, most conspicuous mass-produced objects designed in the 20th century. Think about the enormous amount of space that is consumed by automobiles, or roads or parking lots or highways, and it makes perfect sense to us as we examine the art and architecture of our built world that cars are a part of our collection and exhibition program."
Alain Prost's 1990 641/2 Ferrari Formula One car: "In some respects the racing car differs from the other objects in the collection, which are designed for a mass market. Only a professional could drive this sophisticated machine. But the Ferrari is a superbly functional design and innovative in its use of new materials.
"That word, innovative, is key as I think about these cars. A lot of people think, 'Why didn't you have a Rolls-Royce, why didn't you have this?' Well wait, this isn't about luxury or rarity. These cars, each one, are innovative in some way."
The 1946 Cisitalia "202" GT (also included in Eight Automobiles): "What Pinin Farina [later changed to one word] was doing with the Cisitalia was incredibly innovative, rethinking the whole design and shape of the automobile. It was right after WWII, and he said, 'We need to throw out the old rust-covered rules-with a box for the passengers, a box for the engine and headlamps attached that look like bathroom faucets.' It's just brilliant, an incredibly fluid design that was also incredibly influential."
Thirty years ago, in 1972, MoMA acquired its first car, the Cisitalia. "We limited ourselves to one car for a pragmatic reason-adequate space. Until then, MoMA simply did not have space to show a car on a permanent basis. The curator at the time sought out the Cisitalia as one of the most beautiful cars. It was emblematic of aesthetics in automobile design. Aesthetics was the fundamental overriding issue at the time."
The 1963 Jaguar E-Type Roadster: "MoMA's early interests were about aesthetics. That's where the Cisitalia and Jaguar come in. In 1996 we added the Jaguar to the collection. The E-Type is simply one of the most beautiful cars ever displayed."
With the three cars above and three acquisitions made this year, a 1998 Smart Car, a 1959 Volkswagen Beetle and a 1953 Willys-Overland Jeep, MoMA now has six cars in the permanent collection. "The Jeep and the Volkswagen have been on our 'wish list' for several years. Both have become icons of automotive design. In terms of the collection, the new acquisitions address significant concerns including the social and economic realities that have called for small, efficient and affordable vehicles. The six cars complement each other effectively and superbly illustrate our chief criteria, which now include aesthetics, innovation, speed and influence.
"You begin to see a dialog in the gallery about smallness. You don't just shrink a big car, you start over from the beginning. Ferdinand Porsche wanted to design a low-cost 'people's car.' The Jeep is a great story about American pragmatism. I love the leanness of the design, the sort of nuts-and bolts erector-set quality as opposed to the sleek beauty of the Jaguar. The Smart Car is incredibly sophisticated design and interesting thinking, the way the Tridion safety cell sits on the engine and gets the passengers up high. The body panels are interchangeable and recyclable plastic; there are a lot of eco-friendly aspects to the whole production of the car.
"I'm really, really pleased with this selection and the kinds of dialogs and issues raised. AUTObodies is definitely meant to be a multi-faceted look at outstanding, innovative car design."