Carlo Mollino – Designer, Architect, Photographer, and Car Nut.

Imagine if Salvadore Dali was a gearhead, architect, furniture designer and a pilot on top of being an eclectic painter. Carlo Mollino, one of Italy’s most influential mid-20th century designers, was incredibly talented with a broad skillset that defied having a single label. His love of the streamline and female form was poured into chair, desk and table designs (one of which sold for $3.8 million in 2005, then a record for 20th century furniture) is truly jaw-dropping. But it’s Molino’s love of all things mechanical & fast that got my attention: The Bisiluro was his own design, hand-built race car entered in the 24 Heures du Mans in 1955.

His goal of a new speed record was focused on making the car low, light, and incredibly aerodynamic (complete with retractable rear view mirror). The final product reminds me of  a P-38 Lightning crossed with a bobsled, with driver down in the right pod and the diminutive 735cc twin overhead cam Giannini motor mounted in the left. If nothing else, the car was a major head turner, and as the story goes, there was some difficulty in persuading the Le Mans officials that the radical car should be allowed to enter. How’d she do? Well, it retired in the third hour when it was blown off the track by the slipstream from Mike Hawthorn’s Jaguar D-type.

http://www.designboom.com/history/carlo_mollino/bisiluro.html