They say car aesthetics evolved to keep up with our abilities to bend and shape metal. Cars in older days were boxy because we couldn’t manipulate metal sheets into 3D curves and contours. As soon as that happened, the retro-style boxy cars went the way of the dodo, giving rise to more aerodynamic, curvilinear silhouettes… but what if, in an alternate reality, the old aesthetic just stuck around? We moved onto futuristic-looking LED headlights and cyberpunk metallic gloss/matte paint-jobs… but the shell of our vehicles still retained their retro charm. Meet Hexaleaf, a concept car (and brand) from Ukrainian concept artist Andrii Snitsar. Created as a part of another project, Snitsar decided to share the Hexaleaf as an independent project on his Artstation, highlight its retro-inspired cyberpunk beauty.
Designer: Andrii Snitsar
Snitsar’s Hexaleaf somehow simultaneously looks retro as well as futuristic – think DeLorean but a lot classier. The straight lines and lack of organic curves are almost caricature-ish, but look wonderful on the car. See the cutout on the fender for the wheels and you’ll know what I mean. Snitsar is almost ridiculing the notion of car design by giving the wheels an almost SIM-card-shaped cutout (OCD-people beware). It looks eye-catching, to say the least, and brings more attention to the shiny wheel rims. The car also opts for a highly unusual front bumper, looking more like a metal bumper guard than the bumper itself. It lines up perfectly with those gorgeous headlights that feel like a luxury car from the 50s was given a facelift worthy of the year 2050.
The Hexaleaf logo features prominently on the roof – an odd choice. It can even be seen on the hood, which is where car logos are most commonly found.
It’s difficult to pinpoint exactly the design language that’s on display with the Hexaleaf, but there’s a strong interplay between old-fashioned and futuristic. The car’s shape, just on face value, is a hat-tip to the cars of the mid-60s, with those vertical headlights adding a distinct retro flavor (think Deville, GTO, Galaxie, or even the Eldorado). That flat-panel windshield is a throwback to an even older time when triplex glass couldn’t be bent into shape, giving the Hexaleaf an undeniable blast-from-the-past appeal. The use of chrome, for some reason, feels both retro and modern, evoking the simultaneous emotions of the DeLorean and the Cybertruck.
The rear highlights dual exhausts and a set of three-ring LED tail-lights, hidden behind a transparent facade (so the back is completely flat, coming to life only when the lights shine through. It’s surprising there’s no electric power train on this one (you’ll even see the gasoline inlet beside the taillight), but then again, the fact that it runs on fuel kinda does give it the pure American muscle vibe that I personally love.
