For several years, I have been patiently shaping my 'cabinet of curiosities', the perspective of an explorer captivated by mechanical aesthetics. Born from my immersive journeys within prestigious museums, manufacturers’ workshops, and the most secretive collections, my images celebrate the ingenuity, design, beauty, and heritage of exceptional machines.
Through my signature lighting and a singular narrative style, I invite you to rediscover these mechanical icons as true works of art revealed with precision, poetry, and passion.
THIS BOOK IS A
JOURNEY THROUGH TIME
A TRIBUTE TO DESIGN, TO MACHINES, AND TO THE HANDS THAT SHAPED THEM
A CELEBRATION
OF MECHANIC
and of those who imagined, crafted and cared for it
A book like no other
More than a book about cars, this project will be a journey.
An intimate voyage through secret reserves, workshops, and hidden collections.
A visual and emotional narrative where each machine is revealed like a work of art sculpted by light, inhabited by time.
Ferrari 121LM © Axel Ruhomaully
John Houghtaling's Private Collection
A poetic journey through mechanical heritage
I come from the world of art, heritage, and memory. My gaze doesn’t stop at form, it listens to silence.
Each image tells a story. Each spread, a suspended scene.
This book is a sensory narrative, a tribute to presence and to the human hand etched into matter.
Leonardo da Vinci car © Axel Ruhomaully
National Museum of Science and Technology “Leonardo da Vinci“ (Milano, Italy)
A cabinet of mechanical curiosities
This book follows an exploratory logic not a collector’s urge.
Like a gatherer of souls, I choose machines for their vibration.
Some are iconic. Others, unknown.
All have something to whisper.
I don’t aim to show everything. I aim to show what matters.
Napier Railton © Axel Ruhomaully
Brooklands Museum (Weybridge, UK)
Light is my ink, darkness my page
In the quiet of night, where shadows dance and silence reigns, I write with beams of light, tracing the contours of machines.
It’s not photography, it’s a revelation.
Each ray becomes a stroke of ink, sculpting forms that emerge from the blackness, breathing life into the unseen and revealing secrets whispered in the shadows.
Ferrari Monza SP1 (Icona) © Axel Ruhomaully
Ferrari Museum (Modena, Italy)
A confidential exploration
This project doesn’t aim to show every car, nor to glorify performance.
It’s a subjective inventory, a chosen drift among rare, unusual, or forgotten pieces.
The chiaroscuro lighting draws inspiration from Renaissance painters.
The aesthetic is minimalist.
The object alone is enough to awaken fascination.
Ferrari Sergio © Axel Ruhomaully
Pininfarina Private Museum (Cambiano, Italy)
Mechanical Art Around the World
From Italy to the United States, from Great Britain to Spain, from Germany to Belgium, and through France and Monaco, my photographic journeys take me deep into the heart of the world’s greatest museums and most exclusive private collections.
Each destination reveals the meeting point of engineering and art, where my signature light captures and preserves the soul of these mechanical treasures.
Rolls-Royce dashboard © Axel Ruhomaully
Torre Loizaga Collection (Bilbao, Spain)
Echoes of Women
This book will shine a light on the voices and testimonies of women shaping the face of the automotive world : designers, collectors, racers, engineers, and cultural leaders.
Through portraits where image and voice intertwine, their passionate spirit and unique perspectives will gently unfold, at the heart of an industry undergoing profound transformation.
The Porsche 936 ‘Jules’ driven by Jacky Ickx
© Axel Ruhomaully
Porsche Museum (Stuttgart, Germany)
A deliberate crossing between earth and sky
Cars are only one part of my exploration.
I also photograph the masterpieces of aviation and legendary aircraft.
Some cars carry this memory in their lines: Hispano-Suiza, Voisin, Bugatti…
Behind every curve: the trace of a wing, the pursuit of aerodynamics, a mechanical utopia.
1936 Hispano Suiza K6 © Axel Ruhomaully
Torre Loizaga Collection (Bilbao, Spain)
Intimate Mechanical Stories
This book goes far beyond a simple collection of artistic photographs. It is also enriched by numerous testimonies and intersecting perspectives, which breathe a soulful depth and profound sensitivity into the mechanical world.
These authentic stories reveal cars in an intimate light, unveiling their lived histories, palpable emotions, and the vibrant passions that animate them.
1955 Alfa Romeo 1900 cabriolet "La flèche"
© Axel Ruhomaully
Lopresto Collection (Milano, Italy)
PUBLICATIONS
GENTLEMAN DRIVERS MAGAZINE
AUTO HEROES MAGAZINE
TVR CAR CLUB MAGAZINE
IN MOTO VERITAS
DUBO MAGAZINE
CHASSEUR D'IMAGES
TESTIMONIALS
Brooklands Museum
Meet Axel Ruhomaully
Belgian-Mauritian visual artist and global ambassador for Canson Infinity fine art paper, Axel Ruhomaully is renowned for his unique cinematic vision that elevates exceptional mechanical objects. With his concept, “Cité Mécanique,” born from over a decade of exploration within prodigious museums and private collections, he celebrates the timeless beauty of technical treasures—motorcycles, cars, airplanes, helicopters by casting them in poetic, sculptural light.