Written by Martin Hodgson
For the past few years motorcycle manufacturers have embraced custom builders and through various competitions have had them give a new look to their latest releases. But even a good idea can start to grow stale and rather than stick to the well-worn path, Indonesia’s Royal Enfield importer turned to a fresh pair of eyes. The result is a RE Himalayan designed and executed by leading architect Julian Palapa; ready to rip up the jammed roads of Jakarta, it’s called .02View.

Julian is the founder of the Hello Kilau architecture firm and when he heard about the competition that PT Distributor Motor Indonesia (DMI) was running he was hesitant. The prize was a new Himalayan and the chance to customise the bike for the Indonesia show circuit. But already word was out that the country’s best builders were submitting their proposals. So rather than back out, he submitted his entry like he would a proposal for a new building plan, designs and all. “When I was on vacation in Amsterdam, a call came from DMI stating that my design passed. I did not expect and was amazed. How come my design was chosen from among the works of the kustom kulture gods in Indonesia"” smiles Julian. But having won the prize and finalised the details with DMI, they gave the architect just 7 months to complete the build and he assembled a team to take on the task.

Bringing together his three key elements to building success, structure, function a...