Lexus Claims To Have Built The World's First Tattooed Car

It's a one-off designed by a British tattoo artist.

Let's imagine you have a car, more precisely - a Lexus. You've decided to follow the trend and get a brand new UX crossover in white. Let's admit it - it looks fine but it's not special. Don't have any ideas on how to make it look more personalized? Ask Lexus, they have the answer.

The Japanese manufacturer has just released the story of what it describes as a tattooed UX. In fact, the company claims this is the world's first tattooed car and apparently that's important for some reason. Nevertheless, it's cool.

Lexus says the one-off creation is inspired by the "fine craftsmanship and traditional Japanese artistry" and has been designed and created by leading London tattoo artist Claudia De Sabe and her husband Yutaro. The couple got a boring white UX as a canvas and a Dremel drill tool in place of a fine tattooing needle. The main visual motif is the so-called koi coming from traditional Japanese art.

"When you tattoo a person, you have to think about the muscles and tissue beneath the skin. With the car it was about the way the bodywork changes shape over the framework," Claudia explains.

It all sounds like an easy job, right? But it isn't - it took Claudia more than six months from the initial drawings to complete the project with the actual tattooing requiring five eight-hour days of intensive work. The biggest challenge for the artist was the fact that, unlike humans, you can't move the car into a comfortable position for drawing. Also, the vibration of the drill is obviously physically demanding.

"The best thing about tattooing the Lexus UX, and the reason why this car was ideal for the project, is its streamlined shape. Everything from the lines on the side of the body to the shape of the windows, everything is just so dynamic and beautiful. It was a perfect fit for the design and the concept itself," Claudia adds.