Curvistan might be a country of dreams - a mecca for lovers of twisted driving roads - but until February 19th the imaginary state has opened a very real pop-up embassy at the Mandala Club in Singapore that no serious Porsche lover should miss.
After last weekend’s overwhelming summit of the Thai Porsche community at ‘Das Treffen’ in Bangkok, it’s certainly not a secret anymore that Southeast Asia is one of the global hot spots for contemporary Porsche culture. Another key destination for the Zuffenhausen brand is Singapore, but despite hair-raising taxes on luxury cars, the city state has grown a vibrant, avant-garde Porsche community that casually transcends the borders between the worlds of cars, art and design. Last week, renowned artists Chris Labrooy and Daniel Arsham displayed their Porsche sculptures at pop-up events across town during Singapore Art Week. Now, the city’s very en vogue Mandala Club is hosting an experimental brand space under the name Curvistan. Judging from the buzz of the opening night on Wednesday, the temporary Porsche pop-up will not struggle to draw a crowd.
Curated by photographer and Curves Magazine publisher Stefan Bogner, Curvistan is a gallery, event space and hangout for Porsche lovers, all rolled into one. Until February 19th, the initial ‘Legends’ theme puts the spotlight on some of the most iconic racing cars from Porsche’s motorsport history. The centrepiece of the exhibition is the exact Porsche 550 Spyder that was driven to victory by Hans Herrmann in the 1954 Carrera Panamericana, making its debut in Singapore. Elsewhere, the walls of the fashionable members’ club are decorated with some of Porsche’s iconic Rennsport graphics, courtesy of the Porsche Museum Archive, while brand partner TAG Heuer is showing a selection of eight vintage, racing-inspired watches. The theme of the second part of the exhibition is yet to be revealed.
So if you are a Porsche enthusiast living in Singapore or planning to visit the city in the coming weeks, we highly recommend you drop by at Curvistan for a Negroni or Credino and get drawn into the vibrant, nostalgic yet modern mix of Porsche cars, culture, art and design, books and collectibles that Stefan Bogner has composed for this temporary Singapore attraction. (c) Text:Classicdriver • Jan Baedeker Fotos: Kai Hartmann, Porsche