Rolls-Royce has unveiled a series of custom Black Badge Cullinan SUVs that are covered in graffiti.
The project, created in collaboration with French artist Cyril Kongo, turns the cabin into something that feels part high-end luxury suite and part urban art installation. Whether you find it bold or a little over the top probably depends on your taste. Either way, it’s hard to ignore.
According to Rolls-Royce, five Black Badge Cullinan commissions were created, each sharing the same overall theme but featuring unique artwork painted by Kongo himself.
Graffiti Meets Luxury
The interior starts with a black foundation, but that’s where convention ends.
Each seat position gets its own color treatment. The driver’s seat is accented in Phoenix Red, the front passenger seat in Turchese, while rear passengers get Forge Yellow and Mandarin. Those colors show up throughout the cabin in the stitching, piping, seat inserts, embroidered headrest logos and even the carpets.
Then comes the artwork.
Kongo hand-painted the wood veneer surfaces across the dashboard, center console, rear console, picnic tables and rear waterfall section. Rather than treating each piece separately, the artist created one flowing composition that moves through the cabin.
“We talked about how to make the piece groove, how to keep the rhythm inside the motor car,” Kongo said in a news release. “For me, painting is like jazz. You move, but everything stays connected.”
To protect the artwork, Rolls-Royce artisans applied ten layers of lacquer before sanding and polishing each piece to the company’s standards.
The Headliner Steals the Show
If there’s one feature that takes this concept to another level, it’s the Starlight Headliner.
Normally one of the most recognizable features in a Rolls-Royce, the fiber optic ceiling became Kongo’s artistic centerpiece. He transformed it into what he calls the “Kongoverse,” adding hand painted planets, constellations, symbols, equations and references to quantum physics across the roof lining.
“When I first saw a Starlight Headliner, it inspired me straight away,” Kongo said. “They are a universe in motion, and truly immersive. I knew this feature would be my centrepiece.”
The artist even worked with engineers to determine the exact placement of every illuminated star. Rolls-Royce says each headliner contains 1,344 fiber optic lights and eight shooting stars. One of those shooting stars stretches the full length of the ceiling, something the company says has never been done before.
Details Everywhere
The graffiti-inspired theme extends well beyond the obvious surfaces.
Kongo’s signature tag appears embroidered into the leather door panels. It’s also painted inside the sun visor and even hidden inside the luggage compartment lid. The same motif appears on the illuminated treadplates and the umbrellas stored in the vehicle’s doors.
Rolls-Royce says the collaboration was unlike anything it has done before. Rather than simply providing sketches, Kongo was embedded with the company’s Bespoke team and worked alongside designers, engineers and craftspeople throughout the project.
“The way we worked together with Cyril Kongo was unprecedented,” said Phil Fabre de la Grange, Head of Bespoke at Rolls-Royce Motor Cars.
Not Everyone’s Cup of Tea
For traditional luxury buyers, the idea of covering a handcrafted Rolls-Royce interior with graffiti-style artwork might sound sacrilegious. For others, it’s exactly the point.
The cabin still offers all the leather, wood, embroidery, lambswool and craftsmanship buyers expect. Nothing has been stripped away in pursuit of a street art aesthetic. Instead, Rolls-Royce layered graffiti inspired artwork on top of the luxury experience.
Think of it as upscale rebellion. The automotive equivalent of spending a fortune on ripped jeans.
All five Black Badge Cullinan by Cyril Kongo commissions have already been allocated to collectors around the world. For the rest of us, it’s a fascinating example of how far automakers are willing to push interior customization when budget is no object.
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