Pininfarina has shown a first sketch of the 2+2 seater Alfa Romeo 'spider' concept it will unveil at Geneva, one of three anticipated concept cars that are set to be unveiled by the leading Italian design houses on the occasion of the brand's centenary.

Pininfarina has shown a first sketch of the 2+2 seater Alfa Romeo 'spider' concept it will unveil at Geneva, one of three anticipated concept cars that are set to be unveiled by the leading Italian design houses on the occasion of the brand's centenary. For Pininfarina it will be a double anniversary, as the design house which has been brought to its financial knees over the last couple of years, will be kicking off celebrations of its own 80th anniversary.

In a short press release the Turinese designer says: "Pininfarina discloses the first official image of its new concept car, world debut on March 2nd at the Geneva Motor Show. The Pininfarina new concept is meant to be part of the tradition of successful spiders born from the relationship with Alfa Romeo, among the most significant and long-lasting ones in the automobile history, and interprets the innovative vision of an antique theme strongly present in the Pininfarina roots, the 2-seater spider. An iconic object that, binding with an ideal thread the past and the future of Pininfarina, starts the celebrations for its 80th anniversary, representing at the same time an homage to the Alfa Romeo 100th birthday."

The Pininfarina Spider concept will be one of three Alfa Romeo-based show cars set to grace the halls of the Swiss motor show, with Stile Bertone, which designed the highly-respected current Alfa GT Coupé before the design company was split up last year, set to unveil a new Alfa Romeo-badged concept GT, while Giorgetto Giugiaro will present a berlina based on the new Alfa 147-replacing Giulietta, which is also set to be unveiled in Geneva, meaning that Alfa Romeo will be one of the show stopping brands on the occasion of its 100th anniversary.