by Kirin Rinehart,

From car parts to couture, Lexus is on a mission to elevate the concept of recycling. Using some of the 2,000-plus components of a dismantled CT hybrid—a vehicle that is itself 90 percent recyclable—the luxury automaker challenged four designers to reengineer everything from crank bearings to armrest upholstery into high-fashion accessories even Anna Wintour would approve of. That’s no hyperbole, either: The finished pieces are slated to appear in a six-page advertising campaign in the January 2012 issueVogue. Above, Moss Lipow’s Gaga-esque “Environmental Crown of Virtue,” a dramatic headpiece-cum-eyewear derived from a transmission starter and an exhaust manifold gasket.

AUTOMOTIVE COUTURE

“Merging the worlds of luxury automobiles, art and fashion is another example of how Lexus is ‘Engineering Amazing’ or maybe more appropriately, ‘Engineering Unexpected,’” says Brian Smith, vice president of marketing for Lexus, in a press release. “We were able to challenge four designers to turn one of our most progressive hybrid vehicles into innovative fashion pieces, inspiring the designers, and the world, to see things differently.”

The four pieces will go on display on Dec 1, the opening day of Art Basel Miami, one of the nation’s most prestigious art shows.

The four pieces will go on display on Dec 1, the opening day of Art Basel Miami, one of the nation’s most prestigious art shows. For admirers with deep pockets, the collection will also be available at private auction, with proceeds benefiting the Council of Fashion Designers of America/Vogue Fashion Fund, an endowment that provides financial support and mentorship to American fashion’s emerging vanguard.

One thing’s for sure, we’ll never look at our four-wheelers quite the same way again.

(Source: www.ecouterre.com )