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December 20, 2006: Visitors to the 2007 North American International Auto Show in Detroit will discover a new edge to Aston Martin’s ongoing reinvention. The company will be creating an art installation, a collaboration between world renowned automotive photographer René Staud and the eagerly awaited Aston Martin V8 Vantage Roadster.

Staud’s dramatic imagery of two Vantage Roadsters, one Silver Ice and one Fire Red, set in amongst the stunning Icelandic landscape, forms a 100 square metre photographic backdrop for the stand. The two cars used in the shoot are staged in front of this image, placed on a field of black volcanic sand. The Fire and Ice theme forms the core of all Aston Martin V8 Vantage Roadster communications, including the dramatic and evocative imagery used in the official brochure and press material.

The enclosed stand will allow all visitors to the show an unobstructed view of the two cars, the contrasting colours bringing out the two characters of this dynamic and elegant sports car; refined yet fiercely powerful, elegant with an undercurrent of raw seduction, hot but also ultra cool. Dr Ulrich Bez, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Aston Martin, said: “Like all Aston Martin sports cars, the V8 Vantage Roadster is simple, understated and beautiful, with elegant lines that hint at controlled aggression. It is a sports car with wonderful proportions and details, beautiful to the eye and great to drive. We wanted to give visitors to the NAIAS an uninhibited vision of the stand and the opportunity to see the car for what it is. A beautiful piece of art.”

Iceland proved to be the perfect location to demonstrate these qualities. A landscape of ever-changing natural forms, endless horizons and strange, unfamiliar materials, steam pours out of fissures created from deep volcanic activity. The Vantage Roadsters contrast perfectly with this theatrical backdrop. The flanks of the Silver Ice car are juxtaposed with the cascading majesty of a glacier, while the Fire Red Roadster stands out as a bold slash of crimson against the dark volcanic sand.

The Vantage Roadster is a classic Aston Martin, a modern shape with a direct lineage to some of the great Aston Martins of the past. The Vantage Roadster is the latest in a long line of open-top models that began with the DB2 and includes iconic cars like the DB5, DB6, DB7 and, more recently, the DB9. The result is a pure sports car that heightens the sensations and provides a driving experience that is synonymous with Aston Martin, high performance and dynamically thrilling.

The ongoing collaboration between René Staud and Aston Martin is reflected in a series of seven new art prints depicting the most striking images from the Fire and Ice shoot. These prints together with a 2007 calendar featuring twelve Fire and Ice images are available directly from the company.