Helmut Newton's car photography takes central stage at FuoriConcorso

On 15-17 May 2026, FuoriConcorso KraftMeister presents the world's first exhibition by Helmut Newton, purely dedicated to the artist's automotive photography, on the shores of Lake Como.

Set against the shimmering backdrop of Lake Como, this year’s FuoriConcorso takes a compelling detour into photographic history. Opening on 15 May at Villa Olmo, Helmut Newton. Cars brings together a rarely isolated theme within the oeuvre of Helmut Newton — his lifelong fascination with the automobile. Staged as an open-air exhibition of large-scale panels, the show traces Newton’s dialogue between machine, fashion, and desire from the 1950s through to the early 2000s, transforming the villa’s gardens into a cinematic promenade of steel and seduction. The exhibition will be on view through 30 June 2026, and will be open daily between 7 am and 11 pm.

Newton’s images have always blurred the boundaries between narrative and provocation, and here the car emerges as both prop and protagonist. From early experiments featuring his own Porsche 356 to iconic fashion editorials shot for Vogue, automobiles appear as symbols of power, mobility, and erotic tension. Whether staging a model emerging from a Fiat 500’s sunroof or composing enigmatic roadside encounters with a Mercedes-Benz, Newton consistently elevated the car beyond mere accessory.

"It's a great pleasure and an honour to welcome the Helmut Newton Foundation at FuoriConcorso", says the event's founder Guglielmo Miani, "especially as we have succeeded to curate, for the first time in the world, an exhibition dedicated exclusively to the relationship between Helmut Newton's work and the automobile world, with images in part never shown before."

The exhibition at Fuoriconcorso also aligns seamlessly with this year’s “KraftMeister” theme, a tribute to German engineering and craftsmanship, underscoring the cultural resonance between design disciplines. Supported by Larusmiani, the founding partner of FuoriConcorso, the project reflects a broader curatorial ambition: to situate automotive culture within a refined ecosystem of art, fashion, and lifestyle. In Como — one of Newton’s recurring creative settings — the result feels less like a retrospective and more like a homecoming, where the mythology of the car is refracted through one of photography’s most iconic lenses.

After Riocam, René Staud and Dylan Don, FuoriConcorso upholds a tradition that has made the shores of Lake Como one of the world's most singular stages for automotive photography, and with Helmut Newton, that tradition reaches an altitude all its own: where steel and desire become indistinguishable, and a car carries the same charge of beauty and provocation as any human subject.

As the official media partner, Classic Driver will report live from FuoriConcorso KraftMeister on 15-17 May 2026. Make sure you don't miss the most memorable moments by following us on Instagram and YouTube.

Image Index

01 Helmut Newton, Italian Vogue, Lake Como 1996 (Alfa Romeo Spider 2.0)
02 Helmut Newton, June, Via Appia Antica, Rome 1956 (Porsche 356)
03 Helmut Newton, Nicolas Cage, Hollywood 1998 (Lamborghini Miura)
04 Helmut Newton, Princess Caroline of Monaco Monaco 1985, (Mercedes-Benz 280 SL)
05 Helmut Newton, At the French-Belgian Border, French Vogue, 1962, (Mercedes Benz 190c)
06 Helmut Newton, Isabella Rossellini, Paris 1990
07 Helmut Newton, New Beetle, Milan 1999 (VW Beetle)
08 Helmut Newton, BMW, Monaco 1991, (BMW Z1)
09 Helmut Newton, Madeleine de Rauch, French Vogue, 1961, (Fiat 1200)