Lovegrove challenged himself to create an innovative means of transport, based on modernist archetypes. Visitors and travellers gathering at the Lille Flandre Station will find on the trails an unexpected surprise: a U.F.O. has just landed on the sidewalk and it is able to transport human beings from Lille to Paris in as little as 30 seconds.
This striking machine, shaped like an organic dish, is conceived with terrestrial materials, and yet delivers an unprecedented imaginary form. Ross Lovegrove's U.F.O. was born through a speculation on our own identity. This pure and pristine object seeks to destroy boundaries between art and design, technology and science, spirituality and physics, nature and religion.
Lovegrove explains his inspiration for this recently landed U.F.O.: "Blurry photos and obscure film footage is all we have, along with interviews from Area 51 scientists assigned to analyse propulsion systems and materials previously unknown to man. Can all these people who talk so matter of fact all be part of some broader conspiracy to act it all out? The mystery remains as a discourse between imagination and reality, people divided and derided on a subject that could be so profound and life changing for the whole of humanity if one day there will be a clear visitation to experience in the clear light of day the wonders that we are being slowly primed for."
Designer: Ross Lovegrove
Typology: innovative vehicle
Unveiling and test: 5 October 2012
Location: Lille Flandre Station, France
