BEST RIDE PIMP

Customised Porsche 964 Targa, by David/Nicolas

- LAURA MAY TODD

What do you get a design-minded young woman for her 20th birthday? Well, if you're Assaad Raphael, the founder of Porsche Centre Lebanon, the only gift that could possibly mark the occasion is a customised Porsche reimagined by Milan studio David/Nicolas.

Raphael is something of a car obsessive, and for the past two-plus decades has been the sole importer of Porsche in Lebanon - in addition to co-owning a garage that restores classic cars in Dubai. 'At the time, my daughter Shaha was studying architecture and not really into cars,' he says. 'So I thought this would be a great way to introduce her to this world.' He knew that simply buying a luxury vintage model would do little to pique her interest, so he approached the duo with the idea of letting her shape the project herself. She was already aware of David/Nicolas cofounders David Raffoul and Nicolas Moussallem - both were similarly raised in Beirut - but a chance meeting at a dinner party sealed the collaboration.

'It was a dream project,' recounts Raffoul, who, prior to pursuing interior architecture, had planned to study automotive design, going so far as to be accepted into a master's programme in the UK. For Raphael, there was no doubt that their retro-futuristic style and finely calibrated sensibility would be a good fit. They had already proven themselves adept with sensitive legacy projects. At the time, they were busy reimagining Gio Ponti's Casa di Fantasia apartment, the midcentury designer's surrealist Gesamtkunstwerk in Milan.