The Bugatti family around the world celebrates Jean Bugatti’s 114th birthday on Sunday. As a free-thinking engineer and designer, his automotive creations were extraordinary and dared to defy norms and conventions. His work still inspires the Bugatti in-house team in Molsheim today.
Ettore Bugatti’s first son, Gianoberto Carlo Maria Bugatti, was born on January 15, 1909 in Cologne. In Molsheim he became known as Jean, the French equivalent of the name “Jean”.
Raised in a family of visionary artists, Gene benefited from an upbringing that enabled him to thrive as an automotive engineer. It quickly became apparent to many that his spirit was free from the usual norms and design conventions.
“Jean Bugatti was an artist of the highest order that so happened to craft his work in the automotive sphere,” says Christophe Piochon, President of Bugatti Automobiles. “And for that, we can all be thankful, because Jean’s work was extraordinary; his conceptions at the time weren’t just forward-looking, they were otherworldly.”
As a young man, he designed the Type 41 Royale Roadster Esdars, an elegant two-seater convertible, ambitiously adding new dimensions to his father’s 1926 Type 41 Royale. Esders not only marked the beginning of Jean’s design journey, but also the beginning of Jean’s Bugatti era in business, guided by his beautiful designs and ingenious creations. In 1936, Ettore passed the baton to his son, at the young age of 27, taking full responsibility for the company.
A clear sign of his confidence and attitude is that in the same year that he was entrusted to drive Bugatti, Jean created what is now considered one of the most beautiful cars: the Type 57 SC Atlantic. This car quickly became an iconic reference point that transcended the automotive industry and took its place in the collective French design movement that was at the forefront of interpretation: Art Deco.
His iconic creation even inspired the one-of-a-kind La Voiture Noire¹, a contemporary homage to the Type 57 SC Atlantic. However, Jean’s legacy extends well beyond this machine. His bold work and craftsmanship echoes through the centuries, influencing the shape and style of Bugatti today.
The iconic C-Line design of jeans seen on models like the Type 50 and Type 57 has been traced for decades and is evident in both the Veyron and Chiron² and has become a core part of Bugatti’s signature style. Jean’s design work also focused on the use of perfect proportions, bold midline accents and a cascading waist, which were used to great effect in the Atalante and Atlantic. His use of two-tone colors and the creation of sleek shapes that reflect light in interesting ways is a constant reference in Bugatti’s contemporary design world. There is no doubt that Molsheim’s modern line of hypersports vehicles is closely linked to Jean’s visionary ideas.
Jascha Straub, Sales and Design Executive at Bugatti, said: “While working on a car with a customer, as I play with new colors, textures and designs, I always have in my mind Jean’s legacy and his groundbreaking vision for the brand and his way of treating cars as sculptures and setting motion into action even when the design is static. Many of our customers value the heritage of our brand and its visionary custodians so we often seek to accentuate the center line and create combinations of colors that best showcase Jean’s approach.”
Unfortunately, although Jin’s light shone brightly, his arc was meant to be short. On August 11, 1939, Jean died tragically at the age of 30 in a car accident near the Bugatti factory. But Jean’s light will always shine on Bugatti, helping the brand guide the future. Even in the company’s latest creation, a one-of-a-kind Chiron named Profilée, up for sale at the Paris auction on February 1st, Jean’s character and work are evident, gracefully shaping an automotive solitaire with an elegant and timeless design.