FuoriConcorso 2026 — where automotive becomes art

Some automotive events are built around performance figures.

Others focus on heritage.

And then there are events that do not try to explain anything at all. They simply allow you to experience automotive culture with every sense.

That is exactly what this year’s FuoriConcorso 2026 on the shores of Lake Como felt like.

Even before walking through the historic villas and pathways filled with extraordinary cars, I already knew this would be a completely different experience from a traditional concours event. Everything started with the silence of the morning, the steep roads cutting through the Italian hills and the light that, from the very first moment, looked as if it had been created specifically for photographers.

Lake Como has something cinematic about it.

And FuoriConcorso understands that perfectly.

This was never just about the cars

Most automotive events try to impress visitors with numbers.

More premieres. More horsepower. More crowds.

FuoriConcorso works in a completely different way.

Here, the atmosphere matters more than anything else.

The cars are not displayed under aggressive exhibition hall lighting. Instead, they become part of the architecture, the gardens and the sunlight passing through the trees. Walking between Villa del Grumello and Villa Sucota often felt less like attending an automotive event and more like stepping into a moving art gallery.

That is what leaves the biggest impression.

Not simply the presence of rare cars, but the way they are presented.

The kind of light you cannot recreate

What I remember most is the light.

It sounds simple until you experience it in person.

Sunlight breaking through the trees illuminated the bodywork of the cars in a way that no studio setup or traditional motor show could ever reproduce. Every curve, every surface and every detail looked almost unreal.

As an automotive photographer, it is extremely rare to feel that a location works together with the cars themselves.

Here, that was exactly the case.

At times, it felt more like the set of a luxury campaign shoot than a gathering for car enthusiasts.

The BMWs that stopped people in their tracks

Although FuoriConcorso 2026 featured everything from Pagani to BRABUS Bodo, naturally I spent most of my time around the BMWs.

BMW M1 Procar.

BMW 3.0 CSL.

BMW 328.

And of course, the BMW i8 Concept.

Those were the cars that kept me standing still the longest.

The i8 Concept in particular had something truly special about it. Even now, it is difficult to describe how perfectly it suited the combination of Italian architecture, greenery and the atmosphere of Como. It is one of those cars that does not need crowds of people surrounding it.

All it needs is the right light and the right location.

FuoriConcorso knows how to create those moments.

Cars as emotion

At one point, I sat down for a moment overlooking Lake Como.

People were talking over glasses of Aperol, soft music blended with the sound of conversations and just a few meters away stood cars I had previously only seen in magazines or online.

That was the moment I truly understood the magic of this event.

FuoriConcorso does not sell cars.

It sells emotion.

It sells atmosphere.

It sells the dream surrounding automotive culture.

That is why tickets costing several hundred euros no longer feel excessive. You are not paying for entry. You are paying for an experience that is almost impossible to compare with any other automotive event in Europe.

I never felt like I was working

Despite carrying two cameras around my neck and spending hours walking through the steep pathways of Como, I never once felt like I was there to work.

Quite the opposite.

Photographing cars in a place like this felt effortless.

It became about searching for light.

For details.

For shadows.

For moments.

And that is exactly why FuoriConcorso stays in your mind much longer than most automotive events.

It is not only about the cars.

It is about the way the place makes you feel.

Two different worlds around the same lake

This year, I divided my trip between FuoriConcorso and Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este.

Two events.

The same lake.

Two completely different philosophies.

Villa d’Este remains an icon of elegance and automotive heritage.

But FuoriConcorso offers something more contemporary. More emotional. More lifestyle-oriented.

Less distance.

More atmosphere.

And maybe that is exactly why, when I now think about Lake Como, the first images that come to mind are not the premieres or even the cars themselves.

It is the sunlight passing through the trees and the silhouettes of cars that looked more like moving sculptures than machines.

That is what stayed with me the most.