1980s-90s, The Right Footing for a Pleasant Ride
As the 1990s drew near, the Pirelli range of car tyres was completely renewed, with the exception of the P600, which had been approved for a wide range of models in the sports sector and continued to be a benchmark on both sides of the Atlantic. This massive renovation involved the medium and medium-high range of European cars. The P2000, a “universal” tyre suitable for both compact cars and medium-class sedans, started the ball rolling in 1989 and was immensely popular. The following year, in 1990, the P4000 was destined for a very demanding, high-end market, offering high levels of comfort, quiet running, and safety. The new family of “three-digit” Pirelli tyres for the 1990s was completed in 1991, which brough the launch of the P1000. This was a “small” tyre created for city cars and sub-compacts, a market that was new but rapidly expanding. For Pirelli tyres, it was the beginning of a new journey. A great new journey.
In the magical world of advertising, the tyre went back to being the absolute star of the road. It was almost like going back to the 1930s, to those advertisements painted by poster artists such as Renzo Bassi, with gigantic Stella Bianca tyres in the foreground, looming over the landscape and taking centre stage. Another star in the illustrations was the tread pattern of the Pirelli P600 in the 1988 advertising campaign, when it was shown from the front, in three-quarter profile, or even reflected in a puddle. The lead actor changed, but not the close-up approach in the 1989 campaign, which was devoted to the Pirelli P2000.
Portrayed in a hyper realistic manner by the Greek-American painter Miltiades Skouras, the tyre fills the field of vision, promising motorists that they will remain firmly on the ground, or ready to wear out the road before they wear out themselves, or to be so comfortable as to be totally insensitive to the cobblestones. Another year, and another actor: the star of the 1990 campaign was the Pirelli P4000. In the viewfinder of the photographer Paolo Gandola‘s camera, the tyre appeared in a way that was very different from traditional photos of such products, for it was seen entirely from the side, highlighting the Pirelli “8P” circle. The idea of the safety and comfort of the P4000 was entrusted to a cat peacefully sleeping on it, as well as to a compact disc that could eliminate any background noise, and to a pair of red high heels that convey the idea that skidding had been mastered. In 1991 the family was completed with the Pirelli P1000, the tyre that “makes life simpler” for those who drive compacts and the latest-generation city cars. In the advertisement, the perspective changes yet again: the view is now from above, “like from a window on the first floor of a hotel”, to see what really is beneath the bodywork of the car.
Artistic styles old and new come together to put a product with “a rubber soul” at the heart of communication.
As the 1990s drew near, the Pirelli range of car tyres was completely renewed, with the exception of the P600, which had been approved for a wide range of models in the sports sector and continued to be a benchmark on both sides of the Atlantic. This massive renovation involved the medium and medium-high range of European cars. The P2000, a “universal” tyre suitable for both compact cars and medium-class sedans, started the ball rolling in 1989 and was immensely popular. The following year, in 1990, the P4000 was destined for a very demanding, high-end market, offering high levels of comfort, quiet running, and safety. The new family of “three-digit” Pirelli tyres for the 1990s was completed in 1991, which brough the launch of the P1000. This was a “small” tyre created for city cars and sub-compacts, a market that was new but rapidly expanding. For Pirelli tyres, it was the beginning of a new journey. A great new journey.
In the magical world of advertising, the tyre went back to being the absolute star of the road. It was almost like going back to the 1930s, to those advertisements painted by poster artists such as Renzo Bassi, with gigantic Stella Bianca tyres in the foreground, looming over the landscape and taking centre stage. Another star in the illustrations was the tread pattern of the Pirelli P600 in the 1988 advertising campaign, when it was shown from the front, in three-quarter profile, or even reflected in a puddle. The lead actor changed, but not the close-up approach in the 1989 campaign, which was devoted to the Pirelli P2000.
Portrayed in a hyper realistic manner by the Greek-American painter Miltiades Skouras, the tyre fills the field of vision, promising motorists that they will remain firmly on the ground, or ready to wear out the road before they wear out themselves, or to be so comfortable as to be totally insensitive to the cobblestones. Another year, and another actor: the star of the 1990 campaign was the Pirelli P4000. In the viewfinder of the photographer Paolo Gandola‘s camera, the tyre appeared in a way that was very different from traditional photos of such products, for it was seen entirely from the side, highlighting the Pirelli “8P” circle. The idea of the safety and comfort of the P4000 was entrusted to a cat peacefully sleeping on it, as well as to a compact disc that could eliminate any background noise, and to a pair of red high heels that convey the idea that skidding had been mastered. In 1991 the family was completed with the Pirelli P1000, the tyre that “makes life simpler” for those who drive compacts and the latest-generation city cars. In the advertisement, the perspective changes yet again: the view is now from above, “like from a window on the first floor of a hotel”, to see what really is beneath the bodywork of the car.
Artistic styles old and new come together to put a product with “a rubber soul” at the heart of communication.
