Felix Kilbertus was enthralled with cars before he could even speak, easily recognizing many brands and models while struggling to name them. The Citroën DS was particularly magical to the young enthusiast because its unusual shape reminded him of a shark. Every time he watched one on the road it seemed almost alive, with the hydraulic suspension lifting it as if waking and stretching its legs before a long journey.

It’s hardly surprising then that Kilbertus enjoyed a 20-year career in automotive design before shifting to other arenas, yet he’s still inspired by vehicles of every make. “To this day I am fascinated by how cars move in space and how light reflects on their shiny bodies,” he says. “There are millions of big, kinetic sculptures out in the open all around us – a vast collective work of functional art.”

As the chief creative officer at Pininfarina, Kilbertus supervises all of the teams located in Italy, China, and the United States. These groups work on a range of projects, from architecture to experience design. More than an executive, he serves as a creative guide, grateful for the mentors and colleagues along the way that have shaped his thinking.

As part of daily business in the design world, Kilbertus is interested in photography, which he keeps discovering new facets of. When he takes pictures he acts as an editor, spotting a motif and then framing it. He marvels at the high-quality images that any person can produce with the click of a smartphone button.

The CCO stays grounded by tending to his eclectic collection of greenery. Watching the vegetation grow and change is his way of connecting with nature, even indoors. “Plants are beautiful, both as biological living things as well as mathematical structures,” Kilbertus adds. “Helping them flourish – fertilizing, trimming, and watering – has a meditative side that allows me to step back and leave the dynamics of a busy work environment.”

Today, Felix Kilbertus joins us for Friday Five!

1. 2001: A Space Odyssey

I’m a big fan of cinema, particularly deeply researched and creative movies, as they allow viewers to step into imagined and meticulously designed worlds. If I had to pick one director who mastered that art to the highest level I would choose Stanley Kubrick. He managed to create a series of masterpieces, and from a contemporary design point of view, 2001: A Space Odyssey stands above all.

The technology and its usage were so well thought through, designed, and visualized that it still feels slightly futuristic today. Certain elements have simply turned out to be spot-on predictions, such as astronauts eating dinner while watching the latest video news on devices that look astonishingly like Apple products. Interestingly, the representation of HAL 9000 is an eerily prescient study of AI, maybe even more relevant today than when the film was first released in 1968 – the year before the moon landing.

2. Villa Gontero

This is a wonderful place that I have been privileged to visit many times. Located near Turin, this unique building has deep connections to Italian Modernism and Brutalism, and is a space that inspires me with its unusual propositions and setting. It was bought a few years ago by good friends of mine, and I was lucky to witness how they brought it back to life and re-imagined it for today.

This extraordinary collection of plants is located on the Italian Riviera, very close to the border between France and Italy. This region has a very particular microclimate that allows for the cultivation of unusually diverse specimens.

Its geographical beauty as well as the taste and significant investment by 19th-century industrialist Sir Thomas Hanbury remain striking to this day, and are worth visiting year-round. In winter and early spring the plants surprise me the most, with warm light and briny sea air enhancing the experience. The smells, shapes, and busy humming of insects pollinating add to the charm of this remarkable place.

4. Modern Art Museums and Installations

Contemporary art has a special place in my heart. I feel that this is a way to explore the big questions of humanity. Artists somehow manage to ask important questions first, long before we as a society have answers for them. Beyond the more famous global institutions that have rightly become beacons and attractions, other museums and installations like Castello di Rivoli, Roden Crater, and Benesse Art Site Naoshima particularly inspire me.

5. Exceptional Events in Italy

Milan Design Week and the Venice Biennale are the top events I try to visit every year, simply to stay up to date and be inspired by the best of contemporary creativity. I’m very lucky that both events are easily reached by high speed train links from Turin.

Works by Felix Kilbertus: