betweenRahimAga Khanand PatrickPeter,the
founderof sucheventsas To ur Autoand the Le
MansClassic.“Rahimis a greatcar enthusiast,
but I had no idea that he was a memberof the
Domainede Chantillyfoundation,”says Peter.
“Francehas a greattraditionwithconcours
d’elegancebut sincethe LouisVuittoneventsat
Bagatellestoppedin 2003, there’s beena gap.
Chantillyis a fantasticlocation,and we decided
to do somethingtogether. We wereset on an
earlySeptemberdate just beforeGoodwoodso
that Americanscoulddo bothshows.”
Comparedto otherpremierfixturessuchas
PebbleBeachor Villa d’Este,the distractionsat
ChantillyArts & Eleganceare manifold,but the
mainentryrivalsall of themwitha sensational
groupof classesspreadaroundthe gardens.
Unlikeotherevents,the displayhas spacefor you
to reallyappreciatestylingand there’s no battle
for visitorsto get a clearphotoof the star cars.
Preservationandoriginalityare strong
themes,a traditionthat Gallicenthusiastsand
collectorshavelong encouraged.
HighlightsincludedavintageVoisin C14 with
totallyoriginalDeco-styleclothtrim,and a
timewarpBugattiType 57C Atalantewithjust
12,000kmthat had recentlybeenacquiredby
MexicancollectorArturoKeller. “Thefirst
owner, FernandChaussivert,was very demand-
ing aboutthe bodystylingand keptsendingit
backto Vanvoorenfor modifications,”says
Keller. “He droveit onlyfor a coupleof years
and eventuallygaveit to a nephewwho didn’t
drive.The Bugattiremaineduntouchedin his
garageuntil2009.”The subtleolivegreencoupé
was awardedthe Prix FIVA.
The eventattractedmanygreatand rarelyseen
carsfromprivatecollections,includingthefantas-
tic ‘boy racer’Bentley8 Litrethat was ordered
new by the immenselywealthyCaptainVivian
Hewittand fittedwithsportsfour -seaterbody
plus Mercedes-styleexhaust.The ultimatepre-
war cad’s car, this 12ft-wheelbasemonsterwas
later ownedby the HonAlanClarkbeforeit was
sold to America.Thankfullysavedfromrestora-
tion,thedramaticmachineisnowbackinEurope.
Anotherclass celebratedinteriordesign,with
cars rangingfroma 1923Ballotbuiltfor the
Duke of Montpensier by Moucheet Cie and
featuring no-expense-spared marquetry, to a
1953 Ferrari250 MMwith Hermèstrim.
Ta lkingpointof this specialset was Philippe
Moch’s newlyfinishedVoisin C28Aérosport.
Bestknownfor his recreationof the 1923
‘Laboratoire’GP car, this passionateenthusiast
has now remadethe spectacular 1938 stream-
liner, basedon an originalchassiswith
aluminiumbodybuiltusingoriginalworks
drawings.HowmanyAérosportsleft the factory
isn’t knownbut just one, the ex-AntoineMenier
C28,survivesin California.Moch’s stunning
projectrevivesthe morerakishearliercar, and
featuresa dazzlingtan interiorby Hermès.
Les Voituresdes GrandesDamesbrought
December 2015 Classic& SportsCar 121Clockwise,fromtop:
specialcockpitdesign
classfeaturedVoisin
Aérosportrecreationwith
Hermèscabin;Richard
Milledemonstratesthe
BRMH16;impressive
clubdisplays;cyclistsin
evocative perioddress‘HE DROVE IT FORA
COUPLEOF YEARSAND
GAVE IT TO A NEPHEW
WHODIDN’TDRIVE’