Maserati is upping its street cred. The century-old nameplate has joined forces with “the godfather of street culture,” Hiroshi Fujiwara, to create two bold new riffs on the Ghibli.
The limited editions were built with the marque’s Fuoriserie customisation programme, which enables collectors to create bespoke four-wheelers tailored to their specific tastes. In this case, Fujiwara, a noted artist, musician, producer and designer, put his spin on the luxury sports sedan by imbuing his signature streetwear aesthetic.
The end result is a pair of minimalist and monochrome Maseratis known as Operanera and Operabianca. Like yin and yang, one Ghibli features a gleaming black exterior while the other incorporates glossy white paint.
In the spirit of itanji—a Japanese term signifying the marriage of Italian design with Japanese perfection—the Trident’s elegant visual codes are balanced with Fujiwara’s pared-back yet precise styling. Each car also features a spate of references to Fujiwara’s streetwear label Fragment which he founded in 2003. The Fragment logo can be found on the C pillar and the unique grille which Maserati says embodies the “metropolitan style” of Hiroshi Fujiwara.
Inside, the uniformity of colour continues and sees black leather and Alcantara seats emblazoned with the Fragment name and Maserati trident. There’s also a special alphanumeric tag that runs underneath the triple side air ducts. It reads “M157110519FRG”; the first four characters reflect the Ghibli ID code, the following four reference the date of Fujiwara’s first meeting with Maserati (5 November 2019), and the last three are another tribute to Fragment.
Maserati didn’t share what’s under the hood, though the Ghibli can be equipped with either a 3.0-litre V-6 or 3.8-litre V-8 that churns out 345 hp and 580 hp, respectively. Both cars are also fitted with 20-inch matte black Urano wheels for added attitude.
Limited to just 175, Fujiwara’s Ghiblis will be accompanied by a collaborative capsule collection in the same “unconventional spirit” as the cars. Prices and details are still to come, but you can expect plenty of Fujiwara’s trademark swag.
Previously published on Robb Report.
