Photo: BMW
Chris Bangle worked 17 years for BMW, some of which were spent as the head of the design department. Some of the Bavarian manufacturer's most controversial models came out during that period, including the X6 coupe SAV and the 5 Series E60/61, to name but a few.
Oh, speaking of "buts," I almost forgot about the fattest 7 Series that ever was, the E65 which even got the nickname "Bangle butt." The man wasn't to everyone's taste, which was probably what led to his departure from BMW, but he definitely wasn't afraid to experiment.
That's not exactly a trait you can find in most of today's designers. Sure, they come up with a wacky concept now and then, but the production versions are just reinterpretations of the existing models (either the predecessor or a rescale of a vehicle from a different segment).
This approach is a sure way to kill off creativity, and while speaking to a young BMW designer who drew up the "new" X6 model, I asked him whether he felt frustrated by the confines of brand identity and the myriad of other restrictions. He gave me a polite PR-friendly answer, but his pause at the beginning and his eyes told a different story.
Back to Bangle, the man took an extended break from the automotive industry after leaving BMW (possibly due to a clause in the contract) and founded his own design studio. Based in Italy, it dealt with all sorts of things that don't have four wheels and an engine for all this time, but that's about to change.
Automotive News caught up with him at the Frankfurt Motor Show and got into a little chat, which is when they found out about his secret car-related project. Bangle didn't let anything slip, but he couldn't hold back his frustration at the state of today's design work.
He even went for some family planning advice: "They defend their brands like the virtue of Guinevere and they are doing it by putting a chastity belt around the girl and, sorry, that's not how you make kids. That's not how you make a future."
And then it was time for a bit of nostalgia: "I was talking to a designer here today who has been in the business as long as I have and he said, 'When I grew up, yeah there was a brand, and then I created the brand out of the design in my mind.' Now we're being fed... 'it's a brand, it's a brand.'"
You don't have to be a designer to feel the same way as Mr. Bangle. Car companies have long given up on originality, and you can only blame aerodynamics and safety constrictions for so much. Sadly, there's no point in hoping the CEO (let alone the board) of a big company will ever grow a pair and approve something risky, a completely new design. Bangle is spot on: if you're looking for originality, your best bet lies with the small startups. If only more of them actually managed to build something.
That's not exactly a trait you can find in most of today's designers. Sure, they come up with a wacky concept now and then, but the production versions are just reinterpretations of the existing models (either the predecessor or a rescale of a vehicle from a different segment).
This approach is a sure way to kill off creativity, and while speaking to a young BMW designer who drew up the "new" X6 model, I asked him whether he felt frustrated by the confines of brand identity and the myriad of other restrictions. He gave me a polite PR-friendly answer, but his pause at the beginning and his eyes told a different story.
Back to Bangle, the man took an extended break from the automotive industry after leaving BMW (possibly due to a clause in the contract) and founded his own design studio. Based in Italy, it dealt with all sorts of things that don't have four wheels and an engine for all this time, but that's about to change.
Automotive News caught up with him at the Frankfurt Motor Show and got into a little chat, which is when they found out about his secret car-related project. Bangle didn't let anything slip, but he couldn't hold back his frustration at the state of today's design work.
"I can't find a new idea" - Chris Bangle, 2017
"It's a wonderful stand, it has a wonderful amount of technology they are showing," he said as he was leaving the booth of a former competitor he'd rather not have named. "But as a designer I am used to a set of uniqueness and freshness and change. This will turn into a critique of [a particular car brand] and I really don't want it to be published like that, but for the life of me I can't find a new idea."He even went for some family planning advice: "They defend their brands like the virtue of Guinevere and they are doing it by putting a chastity belt around the girl and, sorry, that's not how you make kids. That's not how you make a future."
And then it was time for a bit of nostalgia: "I was talking to a designer here today who has been in the business as long as I have and he said, 'When I grew up, yeah there was a brand, and then I created the brand out of the design in my mind.' Now we're being fed... 'it's a brand, it's a brand.'"
You don't have to be a designer to feel the same way as Mr. Bangle. Car companies have long given up on originality, and you can only blame aerodynamics and safety constrictions for so much. Sadly, there's no point in hoping the CEO (let alone the board) of a big company will ever grow a pair and approve something risky, a completely new design. Bangle is spot on: if you're looking for originality, your best bet lies with the small startups. If only more of them actually managed to build something.
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