January 30th is the anniversary of Professor Ferdinand Porsche, who died on this day in 1951. We remember the Professor with admiration and respect, enjoying his legacy while working on the Cult of Porsche book.

In Stuttgart 1931, astride a successful career working for others, Ferdinand Porsche founded an engineering consultancy that would change the face of motoring. Porsche and his team created some of the world’s most iconic cars, and patented technology still in use today.

Already a successful automotive leader and engineer when freelance took hold, with designs including the world’s first 4wd electric hybrid, and the famous Auto Union racing cars, Professor Porsche would not create the cars which built the world’s most successful automaker, nor fully experience his family’s fame. Yet Ferdinand’s creed resonates from every Porsche produced, through one instantly-identifiable ‘Porsche line’.

Unique in the automotive world, this Porsche line drives and binds our community. A fascination with Ferdinand has underpinned my working life for ten years and counting, and brought a rewarding creative partnership with one of the world’s finest photographers, Jamie Lipman. Working with James continues to inspire great stories.

The Cult of Porsche book

We’ve wanted to create books with these stories for a while, and have finally found the ideal creative partner and patron in Ricoh, the respected Japanese imaging company. Alongside their market leading commercial electronics business, Ricoh owns Pentax cameras and has developed a exceptional range of Ricoh production printers. Keen to test their production technology to the max and sponsor real stories with passion, Ricoh has invited us to create a series of three books, collating some of our best work to date.

Two versions of each book will be available: a quality hardback version and a limited, beautifully bespoke edition. We’re revisiting some favourite stories, and have also created some brand-new material. We’ll be using a number of groundbreaking Ricoh innovations to deliver a print experience like no other! Our first book will launch at the London Book Fair in April, and Ferdinand Press will publish and distribute the books right here online.