In the family, he was called "Butzy".
But in reality, he had the same first name as his father and his grandfather: Ferdinand.
Ferdinand Alexander Porsche, to be precise.
Butzy had not chosen to be an engineer.
He much preferred drawing.
He therefore logically embarked on an industrial design course at the Ulm institute in Germany, then at the age of 22 as an apprentice in the design department of the family business.
You will understand, we are talking about Porsche.
He quietly cut his teeth there and six years later, he designed the masterpiece mentioned in the introduction: the Porsche 911!
If it was the eternal design of the 911 that made Butzy Porsche into legend, it was not the creation of which he was most proud.
He much preferred another of his "babies": the 904. A racing car designed in 1964, its shapes are indeed disarmingly pure and simple.
Less known to the general public, this automobile is nevertheless a true icon.
It is a Holy Grail for collectors who love the brand, both because of its style and its track record in competition.
So much so that a copy of the Porsche 904 recently changed hands at auction for a trifle of 1.4 million euros. Butzy could have signed many more, if his father Ferry did not. had not decided in 1972 to entrust the management of the brand to a board of
To live his dream
Luckily, the automobile was never actually what Butzy was most passionate about.
The event is therefore the perfect opportunity for him to do what he really wants: to draw just about anything.
And in 1972, he founded his own studio: Porsche Design.
And there again, the mythical objects will follow one another.
His first stroke of brilliance was an object that combined design and technology, and was in fact not far removed from the world of the automobile: the Chronograph I caused a sensation, because it was at the time the very first watch entirely black, from the bracelet to the dial, including the case.
Today, all connoisseurs of the world of watchmaking will confirm it to you: the Orfina Porsche Design Chronograph I is a myth.
And this is only the first...
In 1978, Butzy created another classic, but this time for eyewear: the P'8478 model, known as the “Exclusive”.
Then come Porsche Design's most emblematic glasses, the P'8479 launched in 1979. The reason for their success?
In 1980, following the assassination of John Lennon, Yoko Ono no longer accepts being photographed with sunglasses.
In 1981, she made the cover of magazines with this model, which the world would nickname from then on "Yoko Ono glasses".
Since then, the model has become the glasses of the stars.
sky is the limit
In 50 years, Porsche Design has offered its basic, clean style to just about everything.
Pens, lighters, leather goods, Smartphones, clothes, shoes, furniture, cameras, appliances or hi-fi, musical instruments and even... pipes and dental chairs.
Today, the brand tackles all areas, even the most prestigious.
The proof with the GTT 115, a 35.5 meter superyacht, created by Porsche Design, of course.
In 2021, a partnership was launched between the studio and the high-end hotel company Steinberger, aimed at developing a new “brand” of hotels.
And even that isn't Porsche Design's craziest project.
This title goes to the Porsche Design Tower, inaugurated in 2017 on a beach in Miami.
130 ultra-luxurious duplex apartments, all with large terraces and views of the ocean, and all accessible via an elevator in which you go up… at the wheel of your car.
All this from the Porsche 911, the original masterpiece…
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Lack of flair
If there was a ranking of "great visionaries through the ages" (to be read with a good dose of irony), we should place the faculty of the Ulm Institute near the top level.
We said it in this article, it is there that Butzy Porsche had undertaken studies of industrial design.
What we didn't say was that the course only lasted one year.
Because at the end of the year council, the teachers decided to exclude the young Ferdinand Alexander Porsche.
On the grounds that they felt his talent was… insufficient.
We want to imagine Butzy, a few years later, passing in front of the establishment and waving hello to the teachers through the open window of a 911...
Vintage
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Birthday
Watchmaking
Porsche
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