Australian Roller

Instead of focussing on silky smooth ride quality, luxury features or its 12-cylinder beating heart, a new creative exposition is designed to highlight the visual artistry of the Rolls-Royce Wraith, a $645,000 coupe.

According to Rolls-Royce, luxury and art go hand in hand, one epitomising the other. Which is why the prestige car-maker has teamed up with Australian artist Michael Zavros to deliver a special performance dubbed 'Forty' at the 2014 Melbourne Art Fair.

Zavros' performance marks the first time an Australian artist has collaborated with British-based, German-owned Rolls-Royce, to take place at the premiere of the Melbourne Art Fair, August 13 to 17.

It will involve one of Rolls-Royce's most elegant vehicles, the Wraith, as the centrepiece along with performances by Australia's hottest male models, the Stenmark twins – Jordan, Zac – while uniting still life paintings for which Zavros is most famous.

"His perspectives are intriguing – he will provoke thought around contemporary luxury and foster discussions about the role of art and art as luxury," said Paul Harris, Asia Pacific Regional Director for Rolls-Royce.

The name of the performance, 40, marks the 40th birthday of Zavros, and will be celebrated when the low-slung Roller spills out chocolate gold coins "in abundance", monogrammed with the artist's signature and birth date. They will be offered to the audience "with quiet ceremony, as a gift" according to the Rolls-Royce press statement.

"I am very pleased to have been invited to collaborate with Rolls-Royce Motor Cars. The brand espouses the timeless values of authenticity, bespoke craftsmanship, charisma and attention to detail, all of which I embrace in my own work," declared Zavros.

"As a centrepiece to my first performance, Wraith is the articulation of a life perfected," he said.