The world’s most spectacular garages for Porsche cars
Beautiful sportscars deserve special places to keep them
These dream homes have something that little bit extra. Not only have they designed their garage as a feature in itself, but they also have a Porsche to put into them. Here are five homes for sportscars that make a real statement
For some Porsche owners, hiding your beloved 911 or classic 356 away from full view is tantamount to sacrilege. Why wouldn’t you show off your pride and joy if you could? This collection of Porsche fans has taken ownership that little bit further by fashioning a ‘living space’ for their car into the design of their homes – designer Porsche garages that act as an artistic inspiration.Bangkok, ThailandWhen you are lucky enough to have a large Porsche sportscar collection then who wouldn’t want to show them all off at once? For one enthusiast in Bangkok, that led to them building this bespoke dream Porsche garage for an impressive gathering of cars. The collection spans several generations of the 911 and one particularly beautiful 356. Half a dozen of these are cleverly arranged in a limited space using neon-lit car lifts that take maximum advantage of the area they’re stored in.The fun doesn’t end there, either. The ground floor of this garage also has an area that allows the owner, Gong, to ‘feature’ one of his cars, while upstairs continues to be a Porsche owner’s dream. The centrepiece of the upper floor lounge area is a custom-made, fully-upholstered 911 sofa. It's made from spare panels used in the restoration of a 964 owned by Gong which have been spray painted by Porsche Centre Bangkok in Raspberry Red. The sofa has working headlights and, despite the fact it’s not going anywhere fast, is fitted with disc brakes to add to the realism. Feels like the perfect place to sit and admire your collection – and maybe contemplate which Porsche icon you are going to buy next.Les Landes, FranceSouth of Bordeaux, heading towards France’s border with Spain, is the region of Les Landes. It’s a land of big skies, sprawling areas of heathland and long, pine tree-backed beaches. It’s here that Olivier Saint-Jours, who works as a marketing director of a lifestyle brand and founder of an automotive fashion label, has built his dream house. Incorporated in it is a spectacular garage for his Porsche cars. The house is a simple, contemporary homage to the surrounding area and to the ‘form follows function’ aesthetics of the vehicles that he and his family enjoy. Located just 500m from the ocean, Olivier’s home is inspired by the flat-roofed, mid-century modern architecture of southern California – a place, of course, where the car is king. His cars take centre stage too – Olivier can keep an eye on them at all times courtesy of the glass floor that sits over his Porsche 928 S and 1973 911 2.8 RSR in Viper Green. “It’s really the perfect place for my family to unwind in nature and, of course, for surfing and a bit of driving as well,” he says.St Moritz, SwitzerlandIf you could choose one person to design a spectacular garage for your Porsche cars, one name might crop up more than most. In a career spanning more than six decades, Norman Foster has – quite literally – built a reputation as one of the world’s pre-eminent modernist architects. Underneath his breathtaking lakeside family home in St Moritz, Switzerland, Lord Foster has built a spacious garage for his collection of cars.Entering the garage is a piece of theatre in itself – done so by driving down a long, curving cobbled ramp. Amid Lord Foster’s impressive car collection there’s a brace of Porsche cars that the British-born architect will gladly spend as much time as he can muster to talk about. One is an immaculate 911 (996) Carrera 4 , the other a very special 1950 Porsche 356 with a history that would put most other vehicles to shame – its first owner was a squadron leader in the Royal Air Force, while pop star and renowned petrolhead, Jamiroquai, is a previous steward of this delightful car. With vehicles like these, no wonder Lord Foster built a home – in the form of a show-stopping private garage – of real consequence for them.San Diego, USAIf we consider the birthplace of the modern motor car as Germany and Detroit as the city where mass production gave it to the world, then southern California is surely the place it flourished – and where storing it often takes pride of place. In La Jolla, an upmarket seaside resort on the northern outskirts of San Diego, you’ll find The Cresta. Designed by architect Jonathan Segal, it’s a light and airy home constructed from concrete, glass and steel – and a spectacular Porsche garage for the owner’s 911 (997) Turbo.Rendered subtly enough to not overwhelm a home whose clever use of water around the building’s base nods to the nearby Pacific Ocean, its full-length window gives us a view of this most beautiful of Porsche sportscars. A living space that truly does it justice.Milan, ItalyOn the ground floor of an airy loft in Milan, designer Tommaso Spinzi has built a home that gives full focus to a prize possession – his 1983 911 SC. It’s a subtly beautiful garage space for a Porsche as well as a stylish living area in which his car blends in with vintage collectibles, mid-century furniture and art pieces.There is little in the way of overt displays of colour in the loft, which Tommaso has created in a space that in the late 19th century once housed horses for the local postal service. Instead it’s a blank canvas for the pure white brilliance of the car itself. “Though I’d seen some people put cars in the home before, it hadn’t come across as very sophisticated to me,” says Tommaso. “And I wanted to change that.”
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