Sommaire pour No. 157 de AUTO & DESIGN

“An Eighteenth Century villa furnished with ultramodern furniture and equipped with state of the art technology.” This paragon, borrowed from the architect Maurizio Ficcadenti – founder and chairman of Inovo Design in Turin – captures the essence of the Lirica concept car exhibited on the stand of the emerging Turin-based studio at Geneva. The ‘coachbuilders’ section of the show made room at the 2006 edition for a new stand, to host a promising name from Turin. This is not something that happens every year – certainly not in recent times. Inovo’s debut at Geneva is a positive development for the whole sector, and not just a significant milestone for the company itself, which was founded little more than a decade ago and now operates nationally and internationally in automotive design.…

4 X 4 is 16. In Fiat’s case this mathematical truism is also a play on words that indicates an important starting point for the future. ‘Sedici’ – sixteen in Italian – is the new SUV that marks the Turin manufacturer’s return to the 4-wheel drive segment with a launch timed to coincide with a prestigious event – the Torino 2006 Winter Olympics. This car is fruit of a cooperation agreement that began back in 2002 (with GM, at that time a partner) and has also led to a Suzuki model which used the same design platform. All based on input from Giugiaro, who provided the style centres of the two brands with the initial ‘shape’ that each then personalised. “Fiat,” emphasises Frank Stephenson, the brand’s head of styling, “needed…

Ambassadors and Lamborghinis, Ape Piaggios and Suzuki Swifts, pedal powered rickshaws and the latest rocket by Yamaha. The roads of Bombay and New Delhi paint a pretty faithful picture of India today and of a process of modernisation which, after starting gradually in the 1980s, now seems to be accelerating smoothly towards the future. Nowhere else in the world are you likely to see such a variety of opposites, with extremes of wealth and poverty living side by side in the same city block. This is not because such contrasts do not exist anywhere else, but rather because they are usually separated and more hidden from view elsewhere, whereas here they mingle in every aspect of daily life. The eighth edition of the New Delhi Auto Expo, held in January,…

“We didn’t want to do a replica car, but something new and fresh” Ed Welburn immediately points out as he describes the process leading to the definition of the Camaro Concept, one of the most highly anticipated -and admired - cars at NAIAS 2006. “The brief I gave to my design team a year ago was very simple: make a Camaro inspired by the first generation of the model, but executed in a very contemporary key.” This aspect is most notable in the interior treatment, where there is an unmistakable touch of the 1960s, but done with decidedly modern taste. The exterior is a lot closer to the 1969 original, which served as the template for this new interpretation by the General Motors designers. “The links lie mainly in the…

A fish? The image Atsuhiko Yamada proposes for the hybrid concept Senku, presented by Mazda at the Tokyo show, might look somewhat reductive at first glance. But then you discover that there is indeed a sense to it, and not just because of the forked tail. “Too many cars”, says the head of advanced design at Mazda, “are like cans on wheels, whereas what we should be talking about is sculptures in motion, forms that suggest an emotional speed, the force and beauty of Nature. Like a fish, the Senku is intended to be a creature that moves graciously but also vigorously in its own habitat”. That of the link with Nature is a concept that Yamada has taken to its limit, almost completely forgoing use of the computer and…

Tecno was founded in 1953 and is one of the pioneers of Italian design, which among other things gave us the memorable ‘mobile’ seating created by Osvaldo Borsani. After the recent company, managerial and organisational realignment, today it is looking to recover the value of its roots in an attempt to forge new market strategies in the field of office and community furnishings. So alongside strengthening ‘made-to-measure’ consultancy and production activity, Mauro Carichini and Luciano Perondi have been commissioned to design a new typeface, Tecnotype – something companies don’t often do but that will be a basic element in defining the new corporate identity. And on the other hand, art direction for products has been assigned to Piero Lissoni, who will work on both the redesign of its flagship products…

As it does every year, Michelin North America Inc. brought its Challenge Design to the Detroit Motor Show. As usual, this competition, which was devised to celebrate, promote and showcase creative thought, original forms and innovative concepts in automotive design, drew much international attention. The initiative, which is open to all designers, from the confirmed professional to the green student, offers the winners a space on a prestigious platform – the Michelin stand at the North American International Auto Show. This year’s panel consisted of Steward Reed (Art Center College of Design, Michelin Challenge Design Jury Chairman), Peter Brock (Photographer, journalist and Automotive Designer), Freeman Thomas (Ford Motor Company, Director of Strategic design), Jason Hill (Eleven LLC, President), Shawn Collins (Art Center College of Design, Transp. Student), Professor Gordon Murray…

Gérard Welter, chief of design for Peugeot, sees the marque’s lion roaring belligerently in the 207, the new mini-flagship – and certainly the driving force in the range – for the French manufacturer. The great gaping jaws, already seen on the 407 saloon and then the Coupé, seem even more menacing on the petite proportions of this B-segment contender, which Peugeot has entrusted with the daunting title of successor to the 206. “Placing the cars side by side”, says Welter, “you can see the evolution more clearly. This is bigger, more complete, more comfortable, more modern and more dynamic. It seems to lunge forward even when standing still, with those rounded lines of the tail appearing to lift and push the car. Compared with the 206, this really is something…

Do any of you remember Audrey Hepburn’s white scarf blowing in the wind in “Breakfast at Tiffany’s? Well, Marek Reichman had that scarf in mind when he designed the Rapide, the latest, lovely creature from Aston Martin, a four-door, four-seater that yet remains a coupé and supercar. Presented at the Detroit Show, the definition of concept car is something of a tight fit, ready as it seems to be converted into a production model as it stands, without even the industrial concessions that generally accompany such operations. The word from Ulrich Bez, Chairman and CEO of the British manufacturer, was clear: To produce the most beautiful fourdoor on the market. “Elegance and beauty,” explains Reichman, “were the two stars we had in our sights”. Elegance for him means harmony and…

This is a dream come true for Derek Jenkins. “For years”, he says, “I was frustrated by the fact that you can’t import some of these fantastic little English cars into America. I mean those conceptually derived from the Lotus Seven – minimalist, open wheels and no roof – halfway between a formula car and the totally open sensation of a motorbike. They’re illegal over here, so what did I do? I designed my own, turning it into a motorcycle, to get around the bureaucracy but also to offer the younger user something different from an everyday car. Something fun, efficient and inexpensive.” This is not just anyone speaking, though, as Jenkins is the chief of design for Volkswagen North America, which is currently transferring from Simi Valley to new…

This new three dimensional virtual modelling studio was inaugurated last December during a press launch to journalists from all over the world. The new Shape Design software by the British company ICEM is the first product of the partnership with the French Dassault Systèmes, sealed in March 2005, and promises to open up new, broader possibilities for creativity in computer design. Featuring a suite of intuitive tools for the creation, development and modification of any surface imaginable, from the apparently random to the mechanically complex, this new software has been designed to offer greater freedom to the user and, above all, to render the transition from the immediacy of thought to the actual execution on the computer as fast as possible. The partnership with Dassault provided the project with an…

Value for money is an increasingly decisive factor for the sales of a small car. If on top of this, the car also comes with fun and attractive styling, its success is practically assured, as the excellent market results of the Kia Picanto prove. Avoiding whimsical styling while still giving the car a few distinctive traits of its own, the Korean designers have created a simple and convincing identity for this compact car characterised by a friendly face – with two headlights that are large without being excessively rounded and a tall, narrow grille with sculpted slats, creating an attractive three-dimensional effect – a waistline that rises up halfway along the rear window and a large backlite for better visibility. Even the proportions of the car work well, as a…

Geneva, the first major European show on the calendar, has always been viewed as more than just an important showcase for new developments in the automotive world, but as a sort of ‘health report’ for the motor industry. More than ever before, the industry today seems focused on very realistic proposals, with more attention on standard production, keeping a tight grip on the purse strings for investments into purely conceptual prototypes. Nonetheless, there was no shortage of exciting new models to stir the soul, such as the Ferrari 599 GTB, designed as always by Pininfarina, or the more accessible, yet no less beautiful Alfa Romeo Spider – which debuts alongside the Sportwagon, thus completing the family built on the Premium platform. The launch of the new version of Audi’s iconic…

The story behind the Alfa Romeo Brera is an all Italian one. Penned by Giorgetto Giugiaro, originally as a concept, the top brass at Arese liked it so much that it made it a production car, industrialised and built by Pininfarina, who also designed the interior. The whole process was conducted in collaboration with the Alfa Romeo design centre, as its director Wolfgang Egger explains. “Even when a project is shared with external consultants, we still work on the design analysis to absorb its creativity into our style division. This is also the best way to coordinate the interior and exterior projects.” The history of the Brera is a rather complex one. As already mentioned in the Design story article for the Alfa 159 (see A&D No. 154), the coupé-concept…

Italy is one of the most thriving small car markets in Europe, and Citroën chose the Bologna Motor Show as the setting for the presentation of its C-Airplay, a pure concept car that explores the possibilities for packing fresh, fun shapes and concepts into only 330 cm. Thirteen centimetres shorter than the French marque’s smallest production model, the C1, the concept appears directly descended from the Pluriel, from which it inherited the idea of the removable roof (here as a system that slides back over the rear screen) and its versatile spirit. The main goal of the design team, led by Jean-Pierre Ploué, was not so much to propose innovative architectures or styling concepts with this project but, rather, to focus on the detail – both outside and in –…

Bookcases are now an integral part of the furniture in domestic or work areas – even more so since this functional distinction has become less marked and homes are smaller – and as far as living-rooms or offices are concerned, give them character too. Built according to an apparently simple design – nothing more than a combination of supports and shelves – these items, especially considering their size, must ensure performance levels not normally required by other pieces of furniture. Two recent products meet these requirements admirably. Behind its airy look, the Graduate bookcase designed by Jean Nouvel for Molteni hides a complex system that subverts the normal structural approach, given that it is raised off the floor and fixed to the wall by means of a sturdy shelf containing…

Four years have passed since the launch of the Mégane, a bold departure in design terms but also very successful judging by the market results: now Renault have come up with a few changes to freshen up the look of this C-segment model. This new version has been given a slight facelift and some details of the rear light units have changed, although the dominant features of the original car remain essentially intact. But the most noticeable change is the profile of the front light units – more tapered, set deeper in the grille and emphasised by a more pronounced ‘V’ and wider air intakes than on the previous version. Foglights are now on the outer side of the lighting units, a touch reminiscent of the Mégane Renault Sport concept,…

Pabelló Mies van der Rohe, an important expo pavilion in the beautiful city of Barcelona, was the setting for an exhibition of thesis projects by the students of transportation design at the Elisava Escola Superior de Desseny. “Real Transportation” was not just a title for the event, but was also the brief given to the students. The topic, focusing on realistic forms of transportation, called on the students to contemplate today’s transportation needs and to develop feasible designs without, however, sacrificing innovation, creativity and imagination. The sensations conveyed by the young designers through their projects are proof that we do not necessarily need to look towards a hypothetical future to create something different and new. The fundamental principles of design, such as aerodynamics, environmental impact, ergonomics, legislation, materials, feasibility, safety…