Most Beautiful Car Museum ever?/..the Mullin near L.A
Discussion
I have been at some stage to the majority of great car museums in the world, to obscure Maharajahs' collections, museums of Chinese parade vehicles, private collections and almost every manufacturer museum from Ford to Ferrari.
Yet, the Mullin Museum , situated in Oxnard, an unfashionable town 65 miles north of LA is probably the best assembled and curated collection of all. There are more historically significant collections of course, such as the Mercedes-Benz Museum, but this place is a jewel with a very specific focus...the golden age of French coachbuilding in the Art Deco era, with a focus on Bugatti. Peter Mullin who owns the collection sought out the finest examples of coachbuilt Grand Touring cars from the best French coachbuilders, Chapron, Franay, Figoni and Falaschi and others.
There is a major focus on Bugatti. Not only are some of the greatest cars here, but the museum extends to a review of the output of the entire Bugatti family..the furniture of Ettore's father, Carlo, sculpture from his brother Rembrandt, and art of other members of the family. Art and sculpture from the era are also displayed, and great care has been taken with ironwork, lighting an so on. The museum is only open a couple of days a month, and advance booking is essential and can be done through their website. If you are interested in this era of incredibly expensive and gorgeous bespoke cars, it's a must. If you want to see Mercedes or Duesenbergs or a general collection, then there are other more relevant places.
It is easy to miss the building, set back in an office/commercial park. It whispers its presence. Outside..there are some signs of the tremendous care taken to build this place. The uplights on the pavements each contain an engraving of the emblem of one of the marques displayed, and are easy to miss. A French and an American flag are flown, and the glass canopy is made of.......windshields. Entering the building the entire display opens up quickly to reveal an incomparable collection. An open theatre in Art deco style is situated at the side where an introductory video is shown while you relax in your Marcel Breuer chair. Three-dimensional inset sculptures have been commissioned to line the walls.
Let's start in the middle. The 1936 Atlantic. I first saw this car in 1995 or so in Meadowbrook and it looked fairly tired. Now, fully restored, it has won best of show at Pebble Beach, and looks utterly perfect, every line flowing in perfect harmony . To my eye, it is even more attractive than the only other extant car, that of Ralph Lauren.
Auction story here:
http://blogs.wsj.com/drivers-seat/2010/05/04/the-w...
The same car when I saw it in Meadowbrook in about 1996. If you look at the shape of the bodyworkk behind the headlights, and the sidelight, it looks as if there was a lot of work done to reprofile the front of the car to its original proportions
(The Atlantic was inspired by the magnesium-bodied Bugatti Aerolithe, which was lost very early in its existence. ( The Atlantics are aluminium))
I have previously posted about the recent recreation of this car in Canada..here is a pic:
Yet, the Mullin Museum , situated in Oxnard, an unfashionable town 65 miles north of LA is probably the best assembled and curated collection of all. There are more historically significant collections of course, such as the Mercedes-Benz Museum, but this place is a jewel with a very specific focus...the golden age of French coachbuilding in the Art Deco era, with a focus on Bugatti. Peter Mullin who owns the collection sought out the finest examples of coachbuilt Grand Touring cars from the best French coachbuilders, Chapron, Franay, Figoni and Falaschi and others.
There is a major focus on Bugatti. Not only are some of the greatest cars here, but the museum extends to a review of the output of the entire Bugatti family..the furniture of Ettore's father, Carlo, sculpture from his brother Rembrandt, and art of other members of the family. Art and sculpture from the era are also displayed, and great care has been taken with ironwork, lighting an so on. The museum is only open a couple of days a month, and advance booking is essential and can be done through their website. If you are interested in this era of incredibly expensive and gorgeous bespoke cars, it's a must. If you want to see Mercedes or Duesenbergs or a general collection, then there are other more relevant places.
It is easy to miss the building, set back in an office/commercial park. It whispers its presence. Outside..there are some signs of the tremendous care taken to build this place. The uplights on the pavements each contain an engraving of the emblem of one of the marques displayed, and are easy to miss. A French and an American flag are flown, and the glass canopy is made of.......windshields. Entering the building the entire display opens up quickly to reveal an incomparable collection. An open theatre in Art deco style is situated at the side where an introductory video is shown while you relax in your Marcel Breuer chair. Three-dimensional inset sculptures have been commissioned to line the walls.
Let's start in the middle. The 1936 Atlantic. I first saw this car in 1995 or so in Meadowbrook and it looked fairly tired. Now, fully restored, it has won best of show at Pebble Beach, and looks utterly perfect, every line flowing in perfect harmony . To my eye, it is even more attractive than the only other extant car, that of Ralph Lauren.
Auction story here:
http://blogs.wsj.com/drivers-seat/2010/05/04/the-w...
The same car when I saw it in Meadowbrook in about 1996. If you look at the shape of the bodyworkk behind the headlights, and the sidelight, it looks as if there was a lot of work done to reprofile the front of the car to its original proportions
(The Atlantic was inspired by the magnesium-bodied Bugatti Aerolithe, which was lost very early in its existence. ( The Atlantics are aluminium))
I have previously posted about the recent recreation of this car in Canada..here is a pic:
Edited by RDMcG on Sunday 15th September 21:50
The work of Figoni& Falaschi reached its zenith with the teardrop Talbot-Lagos, a wonderful example of which is displayed here.
story here:
http://theoldmotor.com/?p=52679
When the Schlumpf collection imploded in Mulhouse and the Schlumpf brothers fled to Switzerland, the collection was famously nationalized, and they lost their huge hoard of Bugattis and other cars. It now forms the nucleus of the French National Motor museum on its original site. However, there were some cars in a warehouse awaiting restoration , and these were the subject of a legal dispute. It was settled a few years ago in favour of the widow of one of the Schlumpfs, and this collection was subsequently acquired by Peter Mullin. The unrestored cars line the back wall, and will be mainly left that way. One exception is a gorgeous 1938 Darl'Mat Peugeot which was in dreadful condition and is now on display, fully restored.
http://www.dailydriverproject.com/1938-peugeot-302...
The original furniture from the Schlumpf Brothers' office:
The restored Darl'Mat:
In a side alcove sits a rusted, encrusted Brescia Bugatti type 22. This car was apparently the property of a gambler who got it in France and on arriving at the Swiss border found that he had significant duty to pay and left it there. Swiss authorities having seixed the car, dumped it in Lake Maggiore, where it lay undiscovered in deep water until found by divers in the seventies ..in nearly 200 feet of water, it was eventually recovered and is displayed here as found.
The story is fascinating..auction report link below:
http://www.gizmag.com/the-legendary-lake-maggiore-...
The story is fascinating..auction report link below:
http://www.gizmag.com/the-legendary-lake-maggiore-...
There is a major collection of Bugatti family artifacts, including the doors of Ettore Bugatti's office, made by his father,Carlo:
A carriage made by Bugatti, a keen horseman
a pedal car made by Bugatti for the child of a customer, discovered by Peter Mullin in Argentina
There is also a large collection of furniture made by Carlo Bugatti and furniture of the Art Deco period
A carriage made by Bugatti, a keen horseman
a pedal car made by Bugatti for the child of a customer, discovered by Peter Mullin in Argentina
There is also a large collection of furniture made by Carlo Bugatti and furniture of the Art Deco period
A lot of thinking has gone into the design...if you look at the second floor, the cars are arranged as if n a race track, the the track outline drops to the first floor.
and finally Here is the last car from the original Bugatti company, ( the museum does have and EB 110 from the first revived company also)
This ia a superbly designed and executed place. However it is NOT a drop-in location. You must arrange a visit in advance on open days and buy a ticket in advance. Given location you are unlikely to see crowds. When I was there I was the only person, standing alone among cars of incomparable beauty, perfect reflections of the Art Deco age. Peter Mullin had the taste and patience to build one of the world's greatest collections, and it was a delight to see it..
and finally Here is the last car from the original Bugatti company, ( the museum does have and EB 110 from the first revived company also)
This ia a superbly designed and executed place. However it is NOT a drop-in location. You must arrange a visit in advance on open days and buy a ticket in advance. Given location you are unlikely to see crowds. When I was there I was the only person, standing alone among cars of incomparable beauty, perfect reflections of the Art Deco age. Peter Mullin had the taste and patience to build one of the world's greatest collections, and it was a delight to see it..
williamp said:
Great photos. Did you know that when this car was raised its chassis number was checked and found to also be a pristine bresica in a collection in japan. I imagine some Japanese lawyers did very well from that one...
Had not heard that but not surprised...there are more Mercedes SSKs than were originally produced too
. Interesting information..thanks!williamp said:
Great photos. Did you know that when this car was raised its chassis number was checked and found to also be a pristine bresica in a collection in japan. I imagine some Japanese lawyers did very well from that one...
Checked that story...there was indeed a question, though the Bugatti Trust concluded that the car in the Lake was the rightful owner of the chassis # 2461, not the restored car. Interesting story, that.http://www.bugatti-trust.co.uk/bm~doc/newsletter-n...
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