While some may consider the automobile as a necessary, but planet-choking form of transport, there are those who see the car as a blank canvas for creative customisation, those who lovingly lavish attention on their vintage classics, and those who appreciate the harmonious lines and curves of a ‘sculpture on wheels’.
Enthusiasts in the latter categories will no doubt be eagerly awaiting the top-tuned treats on display at Bella Center when the Scandinavian Motor Show accelerates into Copenhagen. For the sixth year in a row, the exhibition halls will showcase more than 500 sports cars, custom bikes, hot rods, American classics and a whole host of other fascinating vehicles.
If it’s plush interiors you’re after, then put on your sunglasses and behold Jaarka Saarnio’s truly amazing orange trim BMW 328 Cap, or sneak a peek in the cabin of Henrik Hansen’s outlandish ‘Joker’ truck, as if the stunning Heath Ledger artwork on the truck wasn’t enough! The Danish tuning company Kleeman are also bringing along three cars, including the impressively sleek Mercedes SLS that can go from 0 to 100 km/h in just 3.3 seconds.
For glamour, irresistible appeal and sheer extravagant exuberance, nothing beats the streamlined chrome-plated American classic cars. Creations of the post-war consumer boom, these American beauties with their sweeping bodywork and brash over-the-top stylings are meticulously maintained by devotees such as Niels Vendelbo Larsen, who will be showing off his sky blue 1957 Chevrolet Belair, and Svein Thore Fossheim, whose immaculate silver 36 Plymouth Emotion can always be found among the Cadillacs, Fords and Dodges in the always popular American car hall.
Four wheels good, two wheels better? Check out Carlos Stenson’s exquisite 100 percent-handbuilt Moonshine Trickster with its 1923 engine – undoubtedly one of the highlights of the 100-strong exhibition of bikes and trikes. Plenty of Harleys and hot rods and custom-built gems such as Adam Nestor’s sportster work of art, Sporganic. Quite literally setting the Bella Center ablaze will be Peter Forsberg and his must-see flame-throwing Harley Jet Force One thundering up and down outside the exhibition entrance at 18:00 on Friday and Saturday and 16:30 on Sunday.
If you fancy a break from all the old bangers, then you can have your picture taken with the legendary Danish reality show star Linse Kessler and her family who have made the short trip down from Islands Brygge for a guest appearance at the show. On all three days there will be live DJs, music, and live shows. You will also be able to shop for gear, MC clothing and browse the exhibitors stands selling and displaying a diverse range of goods from tattoo art to toys and cowboy parties to Copenhagen Segways.
Perhaps automotive beauty is in the eye of the beholder. The chic stylish cars doubtless take some into the realms of James Bond fantasies while the American classics transport others nostalgically to another era. But love or loathe them, it is impossible not to appreciate the undeniably aesthetic qualities on display.
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Scandinavian Motor Show
Bella Center, Bella Boulevard 5, Cph S; open Fri 15:00-20:00, Sat 10:00-18:00, Sun 10:00-16:00; tickets: over-16s: 150kr, under-16s: 75kr, under-12s: free adm, three-day pass: 250kr (125kr); www.streetfire.dk
