We’ve seen art cars before, models that are adorned with the stylistic talents of a specific artist. Nelson Makamo’s Porsche 911 is the most recent of these projects to be shown and it is truly South African. 

Makamo is a world-renowned South African artist who is based in Johannesburg. You can view some of his creations here. The Limpopo native has featured on the cover of Time magazine. His works have been shown all over the world and are owned by the likes of fashion mogul Georgio Armani and musician Annie Lennox. His latest work was created for himself, and his canvas was his own Porsche 911.

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Dream big

Like so many of us Makamo dreamed of owning his very own Porsche when growing up in rural Modimolle. With his talents and world fame that dream was realised when he was able to afford and order a Jet Black metallic Porsche 911 Carrera Coupé. But a plain black car just would not do for an artist so he set about giving the car his own unique flavour. 

At his Johannesburg studio, he hand-painted a number of the 911’s components and panels. The items were then covered in clear lacquer and refitted by Porsche Centre Johannesburg.  Nelson Makamo’s Porsche 911 features a bespoke rear bumper, front seat-backs, door panel inserts and handles, dash panel inserts, parking brake console and side mirror caps. He picked the left side door panel insert to feature the inscription ‘Mma’ – three letters that mean ‘mother’ in Makamo’s native language of Sepedi. Learn more about the process from Makamo in the video at the bottom of this post.

In their own words

Makamo says the project, called ‘My Life in Motion’, is not just a representation of his success, but also a nod to the various people he has encountered along the way. “I always knew I was going to own a Porsche, I just never knew that my relationship with the brand would start this way – and it’s only the beginning,” he says.

Toby Venter, CEO of Porsche South Africa, says the project has provided great motivation: “Working with Nelson Makamo has been inspirational and this commission is on a level we’ve never seen before. This is a truly bespoke art installation worthy of any gallery. It also illustrates the lengths Porsche South Africa will go to and the creativity and flexibility of our team to accommodate a request as personal as this.”