ROLLS-ROYCE TURNS CULLINAN INTO MOVING ART
Rolls-Royce has partnered with contemporary artist Cyril Kongo on five hand-painted Black Badge Cullinan commissions blending street art, luxury craftsmanship and collector culture.
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Luxury carmakers have long flirted with fashion and art, but Rolls-Royce’s latest collaboration pushes further into collector territory.
The British marque has unveiled five bespoke Black Badge Cullinan commissions created in collaboration with internationally recognised contemporary artist Cyril Kongo, whose graffiti-inspired works have appeared on everything from haute horology pieces to private aircraft.
The project, curated through Rolls-Royce Private Offices in New York, Seoul and Goodwood, transforms the luxury SUV into what the company describes as a “one-of-one collector’s piece”.
A hand-painted ‘Kongoverse’
Each vehicle features individually hand-painted interiors inspired by Kongo’s self-described “Kongoverse”, a visual world shaped by imagined planets, mathematical formulas, symbols and quantum physics references.
The artworks extend across the Starlight Headliner, fascia, centre console, picnic tables and rear waterfall section, with more than 70 paint colours used throughout the process.
One of the project’s standout details is the hand-painted Starlight Headliner, where Kongo worked alongside Rolls-Royce engineers to place all 1,344 illuminated stars individually.
The vehicles also introduce several firsts for the brand, including a gradient coachline with colour transitions and different coloured brake callipers behind each wheel.
Collector culture meets contemporary art
Born in Toulouse in 1969, Kongo first emerged from the Paris graffiti scene before becoming a sought-after name among luxury collectors and global brands.
Rolls-Royce said the collaboration reflects growing interest among high-net-worth collectors in contemporary and street art-inspired commissions.
The launch also forms part of the 10-year anniversary celebrations for the Black Badge family, Rolls-Royce’s darker and more performance-focused sub-brand introduced in 2016.
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Tesla’s new Roadster used suction technology and SpaceX-derived thrusters to jump and flip—but production, price and road legality remain unresolved.
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Tesla has finally revealed its radically redesigned Roadster—and delivered the airborne spectacle Elon Musk has been promising for years.
Unveiled at a SpaceX testing facility near Waco, Texas, the new electric supercar drove onto a steeply curved ramp, used a suction system to cling to its underside and launched into the air. Cold-gas thrusters stabilised the vehicle as it rotated and returned to the ground.
In another demonstration, the Roadster cleared a line of Tesla vehicles that included a Semi, Cybertruck, Cybercab, Model Y and Model 3.
It was an extraordinary stunt. Whether it proved Tesla has created a genuine flying car is another matter.
The vehicle did not demonstrate sustained, controlled flight of the kind associated with an aircraft or electric vertical take-off and landing vehicle. Its thrusters instead produced brief powered leaps, rotation and landing control.
“We’re not talking about sustained flight,” Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum curator Roger Connor told CNN. “We are literally talking about hopping.”
How does it work?
Tesla has outlined three intended Roadster configurations.
The two-seat Performance model is the comparatively conventional version, although little about it sounds ordinary. It uses active aerodynamics and what Tesla calls a multi-mode suction system to increase downforce and allow the car to adhere to steep or inverted surfaces.
The two-seat Thrust adds rear-mounted cold-gas thrusters, designed to deliver acceleration from zero to 60mph—approximately 97km/h—in less than one second.
At the top is the single-seat Rocket, equipped with 10 thrusters positioned around the vehicle. This is the version intended to perform the airborne manoeuvres demonstrated in Texas.
Tesla engineering vice-president Lars Moravy said the system uses approximately 600 litres of compressed air. Carbon-fibre-wrapped pressure vessels occupy available spaces throughout the car, supplying the thrusters used for acceleration, lift and directional control.
The technology is more closely related to a rocket reaction-control system than a conventional flying-car powertrain. Rather than producing continuous lift through wings or propellers, it releases highly pressurised gas to generate short bursts of thrust.
Tesla says all three versions will offer approximately 300 miles—or 483 kilometres—of driving range and a top speed exceeding 230mph, equivalent to about 370km/h.
These remain company claims rather than independently verified production specifications.
Can buyers order one?
Reservations have reopened in selected markets. According to reporting from the launch, Tesla is seeking US$50,000 to reserve the Performance variant and US$250,000 for the Thrust. Access to the Rocket is described as invitation-only.
No final purchase price was announced, and Tesla has not confirmed Australian pricing, delivery timing or regulatory approval.
Musk said production would begin in 2028. That should be treated as an ambition rather than a settled delivery date.
The second-generation Roadster was originally unveiled in 2017 and was expected to reach customers within several years. The program was subsequently delayed in 2020, 2021, 2023 and 2024. Some customers have consequently held substantial reservations for close to a decade.
There are also formidable regulatory questions. A road-registered vehicle capable of deliberately leaving the ground, rotating and landing among other traffic does not fit neatly within existing vehicle standards. Its compressed-air system, pressure vessels and unconventional manoeuvres would require extensive safety assessment.
The more plausible outcome is that Tesla produces the Performance and perhaps Thrust versions for road and track use, while tightly restricting the Rocket’s airborne functions—or reserving them for controlled environments.
Tesla has produced a genuine moving prototype capable of remarkable stunts. It has not yet demonstrated that customers will be permitted to repeat them on public roads.
For now, the Roadster is real enough to jump. Whether it becomes a car people can buy, register and use as demonstrated remains the more consequential test.
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