Do The Hippy Hippy Shake With MINI

The influence of flower power and hippy Sixties chic is patently obvious in the Alan Aldridge design on a unique MINI that is now on show at the Design Museum in London.

This famous illustrator and graphic designer has worked his magic on the exterior of a MINI leaving it covered in a pastel design of colourful flowers and accompanied by resident hippies painted on the window. The fact that Aldridge also illustrated lyric books for The Beatles shows through in this stunning creation. The driver’s side is predominantly decorated in pale blue with the passenger side being predictably pink and an array of images, shapes and patterns covering the surface.

So why would an artist choose a MINI? Back in 1965, a MINI painted in Aldridge’s unmistakable style made it to the front cover of The Sunday Times Magazine. The MINI was used as a canvas for an Aldridge design to open the exhibition with and once again made it to the front cover of the same magazine. MINI were happy to support this artist given that his name is virtually a British institution – as is MINI itself. With MINI’s 50th birthday coming up in 2009, this is a good start to the celebrations.

For those who don’t get the chance to see the MINI before the show ends in January, they will be able to catch it at the global MINI United event, to be staged at a British race circuit next May.