This week our dreams are full of road trips and whimsy as this multi-storey VW van wins the Loves vote for AnOther's assistant editor Tish Wrigley
All the best films have a road trip, from Thelma & Louise and True Romance to Little Miss Sunshine and Badlands. But just imagine how great they would have been if the characters had piled into this marvellous many-decker VW van? It’s all our lovers have been thinking about, hence why this visual concoction by Berger Stadel Walsh, discovered by AnOther’s assistant editor Tish Wrigley via the ever-brilliant MessyNessyChic, has topped the first June Loves vote. For now it may be simply a masterful piece of photoshop, but we hope its victory may inspire a man with a van and a few spare parts to set to making this skyscraper bus a reality.
"The VW camper took surfers to the waves, protesters to their causes, and, strewn with flowers, it was the only option for a young hippy dead set on enjoying a summer of love"
First born in Germany in 1950 as the stretched out sister of the VW Beatle, the VW camper went on to become an enduring icon of the sixties and beyond. It was the background car of choice for the cover of The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan and an orange version transported the Scooby Gang to all their adventures. It took surfers to the waves, protesters to their causes, and, strewn with flowers, it was the only option for a young hippy dead set on enjoying a summer of love. For more than sixty years, its inimitable swoops and ugly/beautiful frontage has been a frequent and welcome sight on roads around the world – never going fast, but always looking wonderful. However, December 2013 saw the last ever camper roll off the production line in Brazil; its demise caused by ever tightening safety regulations to which the 63 year old design could no longer comply.
While it seems unlikely that this multilayered version would match these rigorous standards, here at AnOther we have a longstanding love of fantastical transport options, be they a see-through Sedan or a car like a guitar. So while celebrating the brilliance of unconventional travel, we ask Wrigley what shade her camper would come in, and where, ideally, it would be taking her.
Why did you choose to Love this Many-Decker VW?
It’s totally irresistible. Although, I think for my version I’d ditch the luggage rack and have a sun roof – just so you could have a stretch and a sunbathe.
What colour would you choose if you had your own?
Mine would be pistachio – because I am a cliché.
What would be your dream road trip in the many-decker, who would go with you and what would be your essential road trip album?
I would go to Barafundle Bay with as many friends as I could cram in the decks, and we’d steep ourselves in nostalgia listening to Scottish folk songs.
What is your favourite road trip film?
Paper Moon or Y Tu Mamá También.
Driver or passenger?
Oh, passenger. Firstly, you can read. Secondly, I am an indescribably bad driver.
What's your favourite form of transport?
Horse when being whimsical, taxi when being truthful.
What's the last thing you bought?
Birthday Letters by Ted Hughes.
