Il Gran Torino

A. Paolo Martin’s 1969

Sigma Grand Prix was an F1 concept with revolutionary safety features. B. In the 1971 Alfa

Romeo 33 Spider

“Cuneo” concept, designer Paolo

Martin melded traditional barchetta body style with the prevailing wedge design of the era. C. Bertone’s sci-fi 1976

Alfa Romeo Navajo concept could have come from the set of

Star Wars, which was released a year later. D. Designed by Battista

“Pinin” Farina, the elegant Cisitalia 202 was a high-water mark of midcentury

Italian coachbuilding.

Piotr Degler grew up in Spain and as a young man moved to Italy to study automotive design at its epicenter, Turin. He worked at Bertone in 2009 under design director Jason Castriota. More recently, Degler transitioned to photography. In addition to corporate and editorial work, Degler published his first book, Carros de Cuba, in 2016.

His new work, the beautifully printed, 264-page Made in Italy coffee-table book, documents his love of Italian automotive design. Degler brings a designer’s eye to each of the more than 100 vehicles he features. His expert lighting and framing offer a fresh perspective on familiar classics. He gives as much care to lesser-known and more modern subjects.

In addition to car pics, Degler devotes 23 pages to brief profiles of the maestros of Italian automotive design, including Marcello Gandini, Giorgetto Giugiaro, and Leonardo Fioravanti, among several others. Made in Italy is available at madeinitalybook.com. Degler also sells largescale prints of his work, some signed by the maestros themselves.

B R E A K T H R O U G H S T H AT D I D N ’ T

Gyroscopic Car Developed by a Ford designer and an aerospace engineer, the 1967 Gyro-X was a two-wheeled singleseater that used a spinning gyroscope to remain upright through corners. Theoretically, it would be capable of 125 mph, with a thrifty 80-hp engine saving on fuel. Gyro Transport Systems went bankrupt, but the car was saved and still works—though is limited to 30 mph.