Contact Layer of Shinjuku 2026: Seven Porsches Journey
Polish artist Paweł Kalinowski leads seven classic Porsches on a 4,000 km European journey, transforming the trip into a documentary series and art installation.
Stock photo for illustration only, not from the actual event
- Polish artist Paweł Kalinowski drove seven classic Porsches across Europe with 4,000 kilometers per car.
- Contact Layer of Shinjuku builds upon a fictional 1980s Tokyo racing universe created by the artist.
- The journey collected photographs, films, sounds, and physical artifacts for a seven-part documentary and installation.
- The exhibition will premiere at Luftgekühlt in Atlanta in October 2026 before heading to Reszel Castle in Poland.
The concept originated from a fictional universe inspired by 1980s Tokyo and an imagined race from Shinjuku to Mount Fuji. In 2026, Paweł Kalinowski brought a 1968 Porsche 911 back to Japan, hand-painting it in Tokyo based on memories of the fictional event, which later made the car a hero vehicle at Luftgekühlt Tokyo.
This followed Ghost Layer of Shinjuku, a project that treated a decaying Porsche 356 as an archaeological artifact carrying memories of a life it never lived. Shifting from fiction to reality, Contact Layer of Shinjuku uses an actual road trip as raw material to construct physical memories and documentation.
Stock photo for illustration only, not from the actual event
Spanning 4,000 kilometers per car with twelve participants and seven classic Porsches, the expedition documented encounters, sounds, and objects. Minor mechanical hiccups, such as an issue with Paweł's car spar, were swiftly repaired by the team. The journey also featured scenic moments like resting near Romanian vineyards and crossing a small river without damaging any vehicles.
The accumulated artifacts and experiences are currently being adapted into a seven-part documentary series and a physical installation. The exhibition uses the Porsche as a memory container, deploying moving images, sound, light, and physical items to reconstruct fragments of the journey within gallery spaces.
This project illustrates a compelling bridge between automotive engineering, conceptual storytelling, and contemporary art. By transitioning from a fictional 1980s Tokyo race into a physical 4,000-kilometer drive across Europe, Kalinowski translates abstract imagination into tangible lived experience and multi-medium artwork.
Stock photo for illustration only, not from the actual event
The first presentation of Contact Layer of Shinjuku is scheduled for Luftgekühlt in Atlanta in October 2026. The complete work will subsequently premiere at Reszel Castle in Poland’s Land of Lakes region, with plans for a final exhibition in Tokyo to complete the project's geographic and conceptual loop.
Source: designboom
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