Fabulous Forgotten Collections

The always astonishing stories of hundreds of dream cars covered in dust found in barns in the French or Belgian countryside, or stranded in open fields, overgrown with weeds, hidden for more than 50 years. “We found one of three Maserati A6G 2000 Berlinettas bodied by Frua, dating from 1956. And then, under piles of magazines, we discovered something even more exciting... a Ferrari 250 GT SWB California Spider , with obscured headlights, a car which belonged to Alain Delon, who was photographed on several occasions at the wheel - accompanied, in 1964, by Jane Fonda."

That's not all: Maserati A6G 2000 Gran Sport, Facel Vega Excellence, Hispano-Suiza H6B, Bugatti 57 Ventoux. Several Talbot-Lago, Delahaye and Voisin - the list of classic automobiles, forgotten for decades is incredible. In 2015, the Baillon collection, a “lifetime work”, was sold at auction for more than 25 million euros by Artcurial. Mi urbex-mi automobile collection: nuggets of inestimable value in their abandoned state before restoration.

What is most impressive is the sheer number of cars stored in barns or scattered across meadows overgrown with shrubs.

Christian Martin immortalises these mechanical marvels and brings them to life through striking photographs. This enthusiasm is reflected in his photographs, presented for the first time in this book.

Text in English and French.

Christian Martin, born 1954, graduated from the French Institute of Photography, class of 1972. Assistant at the Carnot studio, he then began to sell paintings at Place du Tertre and in the USA. In 1979 he became Francis Giacobetti's assistant and collaborated with Lui magazine from 1980 where he took charge of the auto section. His collaborations extend to numerous fashion and automobile magazines. He also works for manufacturers such as Peugeot-Citroën, Audi, Opel, BMW. Christian Martin is the author of around ten books devoted to his automobile passion.