Vespa Is a Work of Art! When Design Becomes Part of the Legend

From sidewalks to museums and art galleries to living rooms: we’re taking you on a tour of all the places where Vespa is a cult object.

Instantly recognizable, a Vespa triggers a range of feelings, from happiness and a desire for freedom to nostalgia for a golden past. Vespa’s qualities have undoubtedly earned it the “work of art” moniker. Throughout its 75 years of unstoppable success, the world’s best-loved Italian scooter has received many awards. Its classic models are sought after by design houses, galleries and museums.

Vespa even has a museum all to itself: the Museo Piaggio, which opened in 2000 inside a former industrial warehouse in Pontedera, in the heart of Tuscany. With its nearly 54,000 square feet of space and over 250 models on display, Italy’s largest museum dedicated exclusively to scooters is a real gem for Vespa lovers.

To tell you just how the legendary scooter became a work of art, we’re taking you on a trip to see the many places where Vespa is considered a cult object. Hop on, snap on your virtual helmet and enjoy.

New York – Milan Round-Trip

Let’s kick off with the cream of the crop, the temple of modern art: MoMA in New York, where Vespa’s GS150 model, designed by Corradino D’Ascanio in 1955, has a place of honor in the permanent exhibit.

Vespa has also secured a permanent spot in Milan’s Triennale Design Museum, which has also showcased rare private collectors’ pieces on occasion.

Vespa is found in many other design museums around the world, from India to Belgium, in art galleries and at auction houses, where the scooter often commands masterpiece prices.

Not bad for a means of transportation that was originally designed to help people get around after World War II.

Seductive Curves

Soft lines, a sinuous shell: Vespa’s curves make each of its models unique and instantly recognizable. It’s gorgeous design with a devil-may-care appeal. In fact, the world’s most visionary artists and architects have long relied on curved lines to create surprise and shake up everyday conventions.

Take the architectural works of Zaha Hadid, for instance, which astound visitors through their shapes, soft lines and plays on volume. Projects such as the MAXXI in Rome, with its interplay of light and shadow and seeming defiance of the laws of gravity, serve up a rousing new concept of space. Architect Oscar Niemeyer similarly drew on nature in his works, which never feature straight lines or hard angles, but instead appear to blossom in unexpected ways.

Learning About Art

Vespa is a democratic work of art, accessible to all. It’s not placed on a pedestal to be admired. It lives in movement, coloring city streets and functioning as a symbol of free time, carefree happiness and creativity. More and more people are experiencing art à la Vespa, away from dusty display cases and elitist galleries, by studying, clicking around the web, and trying their hands at different art forms.

There are thousands of tutorials available about all kinds of techniques, from mixed media painting to illustration, sculpture and decorative arts. Looking for the most engaging YouTube channels for aspiring artists?

Check out Stan Prokopenko (Proko) for design, Sophie Chan for manga and Jago, a leading modern sculptor, who posts videos showing the “making of” his best works.