THE METAPHYSICAL WORKSHOP OF SPEED. Exhibit SPEEDLAB SCALDASOLE – Celebrating Speed at Design Week
During Milan Design Week, our studio at Via Scaldasole 7 transformed into something more than a headquarters: an active platform, capable of hosting and producing a collective project. Speedlab Scaldasole – Celebrating Speed was an exhibition, an event, and a device, dedicated to the design of speed and its most radical forms. Promoted by Hafermaas Creative together with Benedetto Camerana, Motoring Attitude, Hannibal Motors, and MAUTO, the project was born as a meeting point for those fascinated by radical design, shaped entirely by the idea of performance.
In the Design Garage of Scaldasole 7—a former mechanic’s workshop that we revitalized as our Milanese studio—the installation explores the theme of speed through a selection of vehicles conceived without compromise: cars and motorcycles designed to pursue absolute performance, beyond any logic of comfort or utility, a record-breaking speedboat, a speed-focused Drali bicycle. Extreme objects that convey a pure design tension, conveyed through a display capable of establishing a direct relationship with the public, both in person and online. Instruments of speed that inspire an almost metaphysical tension, cleavage through space like a pure gesture.
The project was born from a dialogue between Benedetto Camerana and Nik Hafermaas, a professor at the Pasadena School of Arts and resident of the Studio on Via Scaldasole, who developed the exhibition’s concept and interaction design: from the visual content to the films, to the narrative construction of the space. Among the partners, Motoring Attitude contributed to the selection process with its experience in producing events related to sports and classic car culture and in managing collections. Benedetto Camerana Studio took on a project management role, providing the space and activating relationships, including the involvement of MAUTO, of which Benedetto Camerana is president, which made possible the presence of a historic icon: the 1953 Lancia D24 raced by the legendary Juan Manuel Fangio, with its Pininfarina bodywork that combines elegance and function with extraordinary ease. The car symbolically opens the story, which continues with a 1969 Lucini Alfa Romeo hydroplane with an Alfa Romeo engine piloted by Alberto Huober, a 1965 Alfa Romeo Giulia Sprint GTA, and the new Alfa Romeo 33 Stradale, which closes the selection with a contemporary twist, a limited-edition supercar that reinterprets a legend in the history of motoring. These are joined by two extraordinary MV Agusta motorcycles: the Superveloce 800 98 and the historic 1956 175 Disco Volante.
The cars become an opportunity to meet, share time, and build relationships. The morphology of the crowds testifies to this: not the usual Milan Design Week pilgrimage procession, but a broader, more dynamic, younger, and more international community—primarily 30- and 40-year-olds from Germany and Switzerland.The Design Garage reveals itself as an unexpected place with an informal spirit, a pure urban space. It’s an urban surprise, defined by large windows that filter light, opening onto the interior exterior of a courtyard. It also boasts a surprising location, in a central, quiet, and bohemian neighborhood, nestled between major traffic routes—Viale Gabriele d’Annunzio, Corso Genova, Corso di Porta Ticinese, and Viale Molino delle Armi—but on a secluded street, almost an oasis where you can refresh yourself—in this case, pause to contemplate speed itself. It’s a magnificent urban space, with a strong identity, flexible, capable of hosting installations, events, and hybrid productions, while maintaining an intimate yet open character.
Speedlab is the studio’s statement that presents itself as a platform open to collaborations, partners, and external initiatives. Camerana is its promoter and facilitator, but he’s not the only one involved in this space, which boasts a wide range of participation, including Alfa Romeo, Floyd One, Hautlence, OKP Racing Club, Drali Milano Cicli, Chiarella Lake Como, Ferreri Costruzioni, Huober, Lopresto, MV Agusta, J. Henri Quenardel, and Boutique M. Weydert. We’re delighted to open our Milanese home to culture, enhancing and expressing its charm, potential, and beauty.