11 17 2011 Rolls Royce Calls on Rankin to Celebrate the Centenary of the Spirit of Ecstasy with 100 Photographs

When Rolls Royce Motor Cars invited Rankin to their immaculate plant on the Goodwood estate, there was no need to convince Rankin to work on an artistic photography project to celebrate the centenary of the Rolls Royce’s Spirit of Ecstasy. Once he saw the artisan touch taken to create each Rolls Royce, he was so impressed and enamored of the cars themselves, Rankin not only said yes, but “it has to be 100 photographs” Rankin. The title and theme of the series of 100 photographs is the Spirit of Ecstasy, aka the Flying Lady, Rolls Royce’s iconic symbol. “This is one of the biggest projects I have ever taken on – creating 100 unique pieces of art, each of them embodying the Spirit of Ecstasy” Rankin

Admiring Rolls Royces has been a long standing tradition in my family so when I hear that one my favorite photographers was to showcase 80 of the 100 photographs here in Los Angeles at his self-titled gallery, Rankin, on Melrose, I was elated.  As a member of the RROC, Rolls Royce Owners Club, and an award winning show car owner, my grandfather,William Spanjian, cherished his 1961 Silver Cloud II more than anything and any Rolls Royce aficionado could explain why. The level to which my grandfather took care of his car mirrors exactly the love that Rolls Royce puts into each car. My grandfather was famous for this love as you can see below in an ad I dug up from family files.

Rankin’s love for the cars, also, is clearly immense as can be seen in every detail of his photographs like the matching of his models’ nail polish to the unique exterior color of a Rolls Royce.  Rankin uses several techniques, themes, models from his wife to celebrities such as Kelis in locations all over the world to capture the Sprirt of Ecstasy. For instance, in some of these photographs he expresses the exhilaration the Spirit of Ecstasy induces when you drive a Rolls Royce by creatively moving an exposed camera, leaving streaks of luminous light in the image. Rankin portrayed the ageless beauty of the Rolls Royce by using a stunning and mysterious 67 year old woman as a model. He  put metallic substances on the models to create a living version of the ornament yet “showing the life in the eyes” (Rankin).  He clearly captured the mystery and intrigue of the woman behind the statue.  Another theme he used was the mirror image several times in this series to represent the book-matching of the interior wood of a Rolls Royce.

Rankin, also, recreated Charles Robinson Sykes’ first statue which was the Whisper.  Created before the final Spirit of Ecstasy statue, the Whisper signified the secret love affair between Lord Montagu, the founder of The Car Illustrated, and his secretary, Eleanor Valesco Thornton, who did not share Lord Montagu’s social status. As the Whisper was a bit too conspicuous, Lord Montgau commisioned Charles Sykes to create a more subtle statue for the 1909 Rolls Royce Ghost and this was the Spirit of Ecstasy.

Admirers of Rankin’s photography can see his work in magazines such as Vogue, Harpers Bazaar, Elle, GQ and Esquire or at one of his galleries in Los Angeles or England.  This humble workaholic has worked with almost any celebrity you can think of from Her Majesty The Queen of England to Mikhail Gorbachev to U2. What is most remarkable about Rankin is that he somehow remains the sweetest photographer always willing to give a moment to talk to anyone, no matter how famous or established.  It’s this ability and willingness to connect to all people that draws out such a beautiful work of art in all his photographs. Rankin embodies what we believe to be LA HOT.

Photography provided by Rolls Royce Motor Cars where indicated and LA HOT French photographer Emmanuelle Choussy.
Videography provided by Emmanuelle Choussy.

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