I write a lot on design in the framework of the luxury landscape. And it’s becoming increasingly difficult to not only define its meaning, since the word is so overused by brands and marketeers and the rest, but also to discuss the concept away from its old obvious, exclusive, selfish self.
If the luxury of the past was concerned with ownership and price, if it was solely about valuing luxury in monetary terms, then perhaps the luxury of now and in a better future we are hoping to carve from the mess of today, has to be the very opposite, have meaning and invite inclusivity. This is a great time in the story of luxury: we have the opportunity to redefine it in terms of the values of the self, the collective self and our planet.
In my latest designer interview, I asked Felix Kilbertus, head of exterior design at Rolls-Royce, to guide me through the new Phantom, a car that sits pretty much at the Christmas tree top of motoring, and help shed light on innovations within the new luxury landscape.