Vehicles of tomorrow revealed at student design show
22 Sep 2002
Adam Fairless was awarded the 'Best Vehicle Design' accolade in the Corus sponsored 'Autumn Collection', the private view of the Coventry University MA Automotive Design Show 2002. The winning design was selected from a line-up of twenty-four international students by a distinguished industry panel, which included Peter Horbury, executive director of design at Ford's Premier Auto Group and Richard Seymour, one of the world's leading product designers.
Adam's 'Thrill Seeker's Paradise' concept recreates the emotional and psychological aspect of being driven at the edge of a vehicle's limit. It translates the thrill-seeking experience of roller coasters and arcade games into an automotive form.
Jon King, director of Corus Automotive and chairman of the judging panel, said: "We were very impressed with all the concepts on show. In partiuclar we were impressed with Adam's vivid interpretation of our contemporary leisure culture taken to a logical conclusion. His design concept was well thought out and thoroughly well executed."
Peter Horbury added: "I was particularly pleased to see the influence of the many different nationalities and cultural backgrounds of the students reflected in the design concepts on show. Strong national identity in automotive vehicle design is to be encouraged and, I believe, can go a long way to help sell a product."
Second prize at the Design Show was awarded to Ning Huang, from China, for his design concept 'Wave Runner on Land'. Based on leisure and sport boat design, the high quality concept was commended by the judging panel for its perfect extrapolation of Yamaha's brand and product philosophy, one of Ning's main influences.
The third prize went to British student Andrew Lee Entwhistle for his 'Lotus for Everyday Use' concept. The design reflected on other areas of transport such as aircraft and motorcylces in order to create a lightweight, athletic model that would generate an emotional response. The concept echoed the core philosophy of Lotus while allowing for practicality and everyday use.
Brian Clough, course tutor of Coventry's MA Automotive Design course commended the ninth graduating masters class. "The calibre of concepts unveiled at this year's show demonstrates that Coventry continues in its task of moulding the next generation of designers who will be responsible for the vehicles of tomorrow."
Sponsorship of the Coventry University Automotive MA Design Show, now in its fourth consecutive year, forms part of Corus' work in bridging the gap between advanced metal engineering and leading edge product design.
Jon King added: "By partnerhing an institute at the forefront of innovation in European automotive design, Corus gains valuable fresh insights into the future of the automotive industry."
Corus is committed to supporting new talent in automotive design and engineereing, creating a platform to understand the needs and wants of young designers whilst demonstrating the material solutions being developed within Corus.
Press release and photographs can be downloaded from websites:
www.automotivepr.com
www.newspress.co.uk
www.corusgroup.com
Corus Automotive media enquiries:
Rob Palmer +44 1582 763255 rpalmer@automotivepr.com
Marco Ferrari +44 1582 763259 mferrari@automotivepr.com
The judging panel:
Sitting on this year's judging panel were Peter Horbury, executive director of design at Ford's PAG, Silvia Baruffaldi, managing editor of Auto and Design, Grant Gibson, editor of Blueprint, Professor Michael Tovey, dean of Coventry University School of Art and Design, Richard Seymour, and Jon King, director Corus Automotive.
