car design thread

they were doin' great till they got to the grille

 

design development of the Range Rover Velar:
Dissecting the Design of the Range Rover Velar, the Brand's Fourth Model

 

funny, because I'm really bothered by that Maserati front end as well.
Love child indeed!
Those big toothy grins stop me dead in my tracks I guess.

 

Nissan's Chief Designer retires:
http://www.autonews.com/article/20170314/COPY01/303149971/nissans-nakamura-retires-as-design-team-is-reshuffled


TOKYO -- Shiro Nakamura, the slick-suited, mustachioed design maestro who graduated from trucks to penning some of Nissan’s most daring and memorable vehicles, will retire after 17 years of pursuing cutting-edge looks that put Japan’s No. 2 carmaker on the map for its styling.

Nakamura steps down amid a wider design shuffle at Nissan Motor Co. that promotes a new generation of stylists, one from inside the company, another from a Germany luxury rival.

Karim Habib, the former head of design at BMW, has been named as global design chief for Nissan’s premium Infiniti brand. Alfonso Albaisa, currently the head of Infiniti design, has been promoted to senior vice president of global design for all of Nissan Motor Co.

Nakamura, 66, who currently serves as senior vice president and chief creative officer, will retire on March 31. Albaisa, 52, takes the reins the following day. Habib, 46, joins Infiniti on July 1.

“I have big shoes to fill,” Albaisa said by email of his appointment to succeed Nakamura.

The personnel shuffle was announced on Tuesday by Nissan and Infiniti in separate statements.

BMW transplant

Habib, a Canadian of Lebanese descent, will be based at Nissan’s global technical and design center in Atsugi, Japan, just south of Tokyo, and report to Ablaisa.

“Karim has a strong background and impressive track record in automotive design and the knowledge and mindset to develop a global premium brand” said Infiniti President Roland Krueger, another a BMW transplant. “Design is one of the key pillars of our global brand development at Infiniti. Karim brings unique design skills that will accelerate Infiniti’s progress toward the goal of capturing and expanding our share in the global luxury market.”

At BMW, Habib was responsible for such production and concept cars as the X1, the X2 Concept and the CSL Homage. Before BMW, he worked as head of advanced design for Daimler and helped develop the current Mercedes-Benz C class. News of Habib’s departure from BMW first surfaced in January. At the time, it was unclear what he would be doing next.


Nakamura not only made Nissan known for its design but helped reinvigorated Japanese auto design across the board
Latin looks

Before leading Infiniti, Albaisa ran Nissan's U.S. design studio in San Diego and Nissan's European studios. At the luxury marque, Albaisa steered the look of the brand's cool Emerg-E plug-in electric concept from 2012 and designed the swoopy new premium look that gives a more athletic, sculpted look to the lineup, as seen in QX30 and especially the upcoming QX50.

Under Albaisa’s watch, Infiniti also floated the Q80 Inspiration, a large four-door fastback concept that signals the luxury brand’s vision for a sleek and sultry future halo car.

Sexier looks were a big part of Albaisa’s ambition.

In 2013, after becoming lead designer, the Cuban-American Albaisa said he wanted to give Infiniti a more Latin feel that exudes “romance and red-blooded sensuality.”

Nakamura leaves Nissan design in his hands and Habib’s after a stellar career in which Nakamura not only made Nissan known for its design but helped reinvigorated Japanese auto design across the board. His Nissan years marked a dramatic high point for a designer who got his start as a studio draftsman at lowly truck maker Isuzu Motors Ltd. back in 1974.

Nakamura’s makeover

When the opportunity arose in 1999, he didn’t hesitate to jump ship to Nissan. Three years later, Nakamura got his first big break in penning the third-generation Murano in 2002.

Nakamura said that his design aimed to capture the “shock of the new.”

It was just the first of a long list of edgy designs that turned heads and cultivated Nissan’s reputation for sporty, handsome and sometimes downright quirky cars.

Nakamura presided over recharging Nissan's Z heritage with the 370Z and oversaw the styling of the global GT-R, the intentionally polarizing Juke, the Leaf with its upward bulging headlights, the Cube, Rogue crossover and Maxima sedan, among others.

As guardian of the brand’s aura, Nakamura used design as a fulcrum to change old American perceptions that Nissan was a discount brand while winning new appreciation in Europe.

Nakamura’s urbane persona only helped the cause.

Unique legacy

Nakamura’s impeccably tailored silk suits are a personal trademark, along with his manicured moustache. The Osaka native is also a jazz bass player who refuses to carry an iPod for fear that it will limit his discovery of new music. In interviews, he sometimes gushes about his penchant for Italian design, especially Alfa Romeos and Ferraris from the 1960s.

As Nakamura settled into his role as Chief Creative Designer in 2014, he began to ruminate publicly about retirement, but remained a fixture on the auto show circuit.

He also focused on planting kernels of future creativity by opening an independent training program inside Nissan. Students interested in auto design were selected for two- to four-week programs run by Nakamura and his team in Tokyo, with no career promises from Nissan.

Hundreds of young Japanese designers have passed through the programs, with many going to work for Nissan’s competitors, including Toyota and Honda.

“As long as we get the best of them, I'm fine with the others going to other companies,” Nakamura said in a 2014 interview with Automotive News. "In the end, I think the quality of Japanese design is getting better."

Lindsay Chappell contributed to this report.

Y

 

Meet the Designers: Aston Martin DB11
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1V7u67hvQ34&feature=youtu.be

 

I think now their designs will 'calm' down a bit.........at least I hope so.
Their work from the last several yrs was not their best work IMO.

 

this is timely
just got a call from a journalist wanting to know my thoughts on Nissan Design........I haven't called him back yet!!

 

for any aspiring car designers, here's a list of schools from FormTrends
start your sketching:

We often get emails from young people asking how they can achieve their dream of becoming a car designer. Once we’ve determined where they’re located, the answer can usually be summed up in a few sentences:
If you’re interested in becoming a car designer, you’ll need a well-rounded education. You can start by studying industrial design and then crossing over to a more focused Vehicle Design program. You’ll need discipline and creativity and to develop the skill. Sketch constantly, work on your proportions and style and delve into creating highly conceptual ideas. You’ll also need to be a good communicator – someone who is able to communicate their ideas visually. You’ll ultimately need to sell your design to upper management in order to win programs.

This response isn’t meant to discourage – only prepare you for the road ahead. You’ll need to be aware of the highly-competitive nature of the industry and the fact that more and more schools are pushing out a greater number of designers. This leads to over saturation of supply for which there is no demand. Only those who stand out will succeed.

Here’s a list of design schools for those seeking to enter the profession of Industrial and Transportation Design. Good luck!

NORTH AMERICA
Academy of Art University San Francisco, CA
Art Center College of Design Pasadena, CA
Cleveland Institute of Art Cleveland, OH
College for Creative Studies Detroit, MI
Humber College Toronto, Canada
Lawrence Technological University Southfield, MI
Portland Institute Portland, OR
Pratt Institute New York, NY
Savannah College of Art and Design Atlanta, GA
University of Cincinnati – School of Design Cincinnati, OH

EUROPE
Coventry School of Art and Design UK
Creapole ESDI France
Domus Academy Italy
Elisava School of Design Spain
Hochschule Pforzheim Germany
Lahti University of Applied Sciences Finland
Academy of Fine Art and Design Bratislava Slovakia
Instituto Europeo di Design Italy
Institut Superior du Design (ISD) France
ISSAM Istituto di Scienze dell’Automobile Modena Italy
Istituto d’Arte Applicata e Design Italy
Majenta Academy Spain, Sweden, UK
Politecnico di Milano Italy
Reutlingen University Germany
Royal College of Art UK
Scuola Politecnica di Design Italy
Strate College France
Swansea Metropolitan University UK
Umeå Institute of Design Sweden
University of Bradford (Industrial Design) UK
University of Northumbria UK

ASIA/PACIFIC
DSK International School of Design India
Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts China
Hongik University Korea
Monash University Australia
Kookmin University Korea
Tokyo Communication Arts – Car Design Japan
Universiti Malaysia Sarawak Malaysia

 

Andrew, great idea.
However, the time commitment is such that I just couldn't handle that level of involvement right now.
I am more than happy to answer any and all questions, if I can regarding the topic, but can't see myself putting together a formalized training program. Maybe someone else could step up to this?
Having said that, if anyone wishes to either post their work here or even send it to me personally, i'm more than happy to give my input.
It's only my opinion, but we all have opinions, correct?

 

Well said.
Boot Camp at Art Center/CCS is pretty much the full 4 yrs, and then there's still no guarantee of success.