A gothic black-stone showroom at night, its crimson raven seal glowing above the Glace Noire Auto sign

COACHWORKS & SHOWROOM · BY APPOINTMENT

Crafted from Shadow, Forged from Ice.

ENTER AFTER DARK

01 /THE HOUSE

We do not build cars. We summon them. Each one is drawn in shadow, struck in fire and quenched in black ice, until nothing remains but the line.

VIII: Commissions a year. Never more.
4 000: Hours of handwork in every body.
1/1: Every car is the only one.

02 /THE COLLECTION

Eight cars. One of each.

A black coupé with a pierced gothic chrome grille on a cracked ice floor before the raven seal

No. I / VIII

Cathédrale

1934 · Grand coupé

Its grille was traced from the rose window of a burned chapel.

Engine: V16 · 7.4 L
Body: Pierced chrome tracery
Finish: Nocturne black, garnet leather

The rear of a black fastback with a riveted spine and crimson light blades on an ice floor

No. II / VIII

Nocturne

1936 · Fastback

Drawn to be seen from behind. That is how its rivals know it.

Engine: Straight-eight, twin superchargers
Body: Riveted-spine aluminium
Finish: Obsidian satin, ember blades

A black art deco coupé with a raven bonnet mascot and crimson coachlines in front of the seal

No. III / VIII

Corbeau

1937 · Aérodyne coupé

The raven on the bonnet watches the road, so the driver never has to.

Engine: V12 · 6.2 L
Body: Hand-beaten aluminium
Finish: Black satin, crimson coachline

A long black teardrop coupé with red-lit bonnet louvres on cracked ice

No. IV / VIII

Sillage

1938 · Teardrop coupé

It leaves a wake of cold air and a single red line.

Engine: V12 · 5.6 L
Body: Teardrop aluminium, skirted wheels
Finish: Black satin, ember louvres

A chopped matte black coupé with an oxblood cabin glowing before the raven seal

No. V / VIII

Veuve Noire

1939 · Chopped coupé

Mourning black, nothing more. The quietest car in the house, and the most feared.

Engine: V8 · 5.8 L
Body: Chopped and channelled steel
Finish: Matte black, oxblood cabin

A black streamlined coupé with hand-painted crimson flames on cracked ice

No. VI / VIII

Braise

1949 · Custom coupé

Embers under the lacquer. Hand-laid flames, forty coats deep.

Engine: Supercharged straight-eight
Body: Louvred steel, chrome waterfall grille
Finish: Ember flames over black

A long finned black limousine with chrome and crimson spears before a frozen rock wall

No. VII / VIII

Gisant

1959 · Limousine

A limousine for the last ride of the night.

Engine: V8 · 7.0 L
Body: Long-roof steel, twin tail fins
Finish: Black lacquer, crimson spears

A satin black muscle coupé with red-ringed headlamps on wet stone beneath red mountains

No. VIII / VIII

Crête Écarlate

1969 · Muscle coupé

The youngest blood in the house, and the loudest.

Engine: V8 · 7.2 L
Body: Widened steel, carbon bonnet
Finish: Satin black, crimson calipers

03 /THE SHOWROOM

DOORS OPEN AT NIGHTFALL

Black marble. Chandelier light.

Behind the gothic glass, the collection rests under crystal and candle. The fountains are kept just above freezing, and the floor is polished until the cars stand on their own reflections. No two visits show the same cars in the same light.

Viewing by appointment only.

Fog drifting across the wet black marble plaza of the gothic showroom

The Glace Noire Auto facade with chandeliers and classic cars behind tall gothic windows — GLACE NOIRE AUTO · THE NORTH HALL45° N

04 /THE CRAFT

Shadow. Fire. Ice.

I
Drawn in shadow
Every car begins as charcoal on black paper, lit from one side, so that only the light can draw the line.
II
Struck in fire
Panels are hand-beaten over oak bucks, then lacquered in up to forty coats, each rubbed back by hand.
III
Quenched in ice
The finish cures for nine nights in a cold room at −30 °C, until it sets as deep and still as black ice.

05 /THE FILM

01:02 / 16:9

VISUAL CONCEPT & FILMGianni Perugini ↗

06 /THE GALLERY

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