A rendering of the monument that will go into a park in Louis Chevrolet's Swiss hometown.
No, that’s not the world’s largest wad of used aluminum foil. Stare more closely and you’ll pick out the trademark mustache of auto racer and automotive pioneer Louis Chevrolet.
The rendering seen here is an approximation of what it will look like when a large chrome bust goes into Park West in La Chaux-du-Fonds, Switzerland, Louis Chevrolet’s birthplace. The work of artist Christian Gonzenbach, it was selected from a wide range of entries in an international competition designed to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the iconic automotive brand and its founder.
(For more on Louis Chevrolet, Swiss watch capital La Chaud-du-Fonds and the competition, Click Here.)
Ultimately, an international jury had to select from four quite distinct and different ways of interpreting Louis Joseph Chevrolet’s role in automotive history. The polished steel bust, measuring 16.4 feet, will be a permanent fixture in the park, which anchors a community that serves as home to Omega, Movado and a number of other well-known Swiss watch companies.
The third-largest city in French-speaking Switzerland has produced a number of successful native sons, including not only Louis Chevrolet but also the architect best known as Le Corbusier.
“Christian Gonzenbach has created a work of art which the jury found the most emotionally engaging of the four unique proposals. His approach is as pioneering as the man who founded the Chevrolet brand. The visual complexity and ever changing reflections will make this piece of art very intriguing,” said Susan Docherty, chairwoman of the jury and president and managing director of Chevrolet Europe.
The monument actually won’t go into Park West until closer to the 101st anniversary of the General Motors brand. The Chevrolet Motor Co. was officially founded on November 3, 1911 by the Swiss émigré and Billy Durant. Durant was the founder of GM but, in 1911, had been exiled after running afoul of investors. He saw the partnership with Louis Chevrolet as a way to return to then-booming auto industry.
Ironically, the race car driver sold off his shares after a dispute with Durant – shortly before the brand proved so successful Durant was able to use its profits to regain control of GM. Mssr. Chevrolet’s own fortunes never really recovered. He lost whatever money he had in the 1929 Wall Street crash and in his final years was forced to take a job on the assembly line at the company he founded.