Wanna be a car designer? Maybe you should think again.
Tony Thacker reports on the road to the studio, 1990s style.
Long hours, pain, frustration and good old-fashioned sweat are
what car building is all about. Just ask Art Center College of Design
alumni Robert Bauer, 24, and David Shumate, 31: For their senior thesis
last year Rob and David designed and built a complete running car in
just eight months, an accomplishment that soon transported them to
in-house jobs at Ford and Kia respectively. That put Bauer and Shumate far
ahead of most of their classmates - exactly where they
had to be to succeed in the world of automotive styling.
Everybody knows that automobiles are shaped by highly
trained specialists, but just who these people are and how they got that
way remains opaque. To get a better understanding of what it's like to go through design school and how a promising
young stylist must struggle to land a job afterward, SCI spoke to Rob and David about their time at Art Center, the
construction of their prototype and what it's like to star in the real world today. We also talked to 28-year-old Nick Pugh, another
Art Center alumnus whose dream took him down a very different yellow-brick road.
We started with the eldest, David, who grew up in Seattle, played drums in the pre-grunge music scene,
graduated from the University of Washington with a degree in industrial design and went to work as a yacht designer for
Bayliner. Despite this nautical specialty, however, "I was always interested in cars," Shumate asserts. "I've probably owned
two dozen since I was a teenager and still have the Triumph Spitfire I drove to school. The highlights were a '63 XKE
coupe, a full-race Mini Cooper S and a '61 Cadillac Coupe de Ville, and my current project is a 1949 Pinin Farina-bodied
Fiat 1100ES - Pinin Farina's first production car and one of only about 200 built. The previous owner said it was raced in
the Mille Miglia, and eventually I'd like to run it in the Storica when I'm finished."
Even with this automotive fascination in mind, why would David give up a hard-to-get job at Bayliner in
the hope of finding an even rarer one with the auto industry? "Bayliner had a great library and I was always hanging out
there looking at pictures of cars. Gradually it just dawned on me that what I really wanted to do was design
those - and that if I didn't go to Art Center now, it would be never."
Though by no means the only respected school for industrial designers, the Art Center College of Design
in Pasadena, California is generally recognized as the automotive stylists' Harvard. David knew that if he wanted to
give himself the best chance of success, a degree from Art Center was at the top of the agenda.
Rob Bauer, by contrast, wasn't particularly fascinated by cars at the start but was always doodling while he
grew up in Fort Walton, Florida. "I guess I had a natural talent," he recalls today, "and instinctively knew I was going to be
an artist of some kind - but definitely not the
starving kind."
Growing up in Florida, he "...knew nothing about industrial design but decided that automotive design would
be a good, solid career. I also knew I had the determination to make it. Not knowing of Art Center's existence I'd
intended to go to one of Florida's art schools, but at a career fair I showed my portfolio to Jerry Allen of Art Center. He
encouraged me to apply, and to send a portfolio including a lot of loose sketches to show my thinking process - how I got from A
to B. So I worked on a stack of detail sketches to present with my application and with my father went to Los Angeles
for the first time.
"LA came as quite a shock after Fort Walton, but my father and
I were impressed with Art Center; it seemed so professional compared
to the local schools that I figured, `If I'm going to invest all this time
and money, I want it to be my best shot. This is for the rest of my life.'
Two weeks later I was accepted, but there was no room for me right away
and I had to sit out a semester. I began in January of '91, straight out of
high school and with little preparation: I let Art Center mold me and steer
me toward industrial design."
Nick Pugh, who graduated in the summer of 1990, enjoyed a more cosmopolitan childhood than most of
his peers. Born in Paris as the son of a professor of mathematics, his family moved almost annually until they settled
in Berkeley, California. "It was great," he recalls today, "an incredibly interesting upbringing. Definitely not boring."
As for his choice of transportation design, "I was never particularly `into' cars; sure I
liked them, but it's never been the passion it is with some other guys. I was very interested in
architecture, but that's too static, too solid - too mathematical. I wanted something more
fluid. Then in the early '80s I saw some concept-car sketches from Art Center and they really excited
me. As a kid I was into science fiction and I collected reptiles; suddenly I saw that if you
combined reptiles with automobiles you could create living architecture.
"In the end I wound up doing transportation design at Coventry Polytechnic, but within
a year I was tired of England; I applied to Art Center and was accepted."
Opting not to pursue regular OEM studio work, 1990 grad Nick Pugh hoped to develop his alternative-fueled
Xeno concepts (above designs and photos on left) independently. Funding from the natural-gas industry has kept the
project alive, but the struggle to create a running example goes on.
But while Art Center is without a doubt one of the world's leading art schools, in
David Shumate's opinion it doesn't adequately prepare you for the real world. "I don't think I'm
your typical Art Center student; I already had work experience at Bayliner and therefore
understood the packaging concept, had dealt with suppliers, and most importantly knew how to
communicate with engineers. I think I also had more self-confidence than your average student. Rob Bauer is also atypical, in
that he's got solid drive; I think he was only late for class once in three years. He always arrived early and picked the best
spot to display his work - he was totally committed.
"And the other thing that makes us atypical is that we
both got jobs - Rob at Ford and myself at Kia. I
think perhaps only four of the twelve students that graduated that year found work in OEM studios."
When it comes to dealing with the real world, "For some reason the school doesn't impart what I think is
the necessary experience," says David. "By the sixth term you're committed: You've already spent about $45,000
(Transportation Design is a $7800/semester, 8-semester program) and the naiveté is beginning to wear off. You realize that
pretty soon the fun will be over and it'll be time to go to work."
In Rob Bauer's sixth term he was lucky enough to get a summer internship with Ford - one of two students
there from Art Center together with five from Detroit's Center for Creative Studies and one from the Cleveland Institute of
Art. Artistically, at least, Rob soon found that Art Center had lived up to its reputation: "Pretty soon it seemed obvious
that we were better trained, more professional in our presentations, and our visual communication skills seemed a lot
better than the other interns'."
For his seventh semester David Shumate attended Art Center (Europe), which in his opinion "Was the best
thing I could have done. The tuition is a little cheaper - which helped defray the travel costs - and in the three months I
was there we took field trips to International Automotive Design, the European studios of Mazda and Opel, and the
Rosso Bianco museum. Outside designers also came in to give us intensive workshops -
for example to design a city car from scratch. It was a great experience.
In all the time I was at Pasadena," however, "I don't think we took one
field trip. Which is a shame, because visiting a working studio gives you a glimpse
- albeit a brief one - of what it's like in the real world. The students need that."
There are more than a dozen professional styling studios in Southern
California and at least ten are headed by Art Center alums; despite this proximity
and kinship, however, so far there's only limited interaction between these
institutions and the students.
Bauer and Shumate's senior thesis, the Kawasaki-powered Tü roadster, demonstrated their ability
to take a design from concept to completion. Since manufacturers want stylists with managerial as well
as artistic skills, the '94 grads are convinced the project helped them find work.
According to Rob, in all his time at Pasadena only two of his lecturers - Doug Halbert of Honda and Andy
Ogden, who's now at Disney - really told it like it was. Meanwhile the Ford Motor Company, which funds the
Transportation Design department chair, is only now initiating intensive workshops to give students a better insight into the
working conditions of a functioning studio.
On the other hand, students in their seventh and eighth terms do take on projects sponsored by auto
manufacturers. Still, David found this process ultimately disappointing. "The designers who came to look at our work seemed
afraid of being overly critical, and while it might be shattering to have your work criticized, it's fundamentally necessary
to knowing where you stand."
So what are companies really looking for? "You only get ten to 15 minutes to present three years of
work," Shumate points out. "Assuming that your body of work is acceptable, then the impression you make - and thus
your likelihood of being employed - comes down to your ability to communicate.
"Companies are looking for people who can communicate with engineers and explain the concepts
behind their ideas. In a studio you're competing with perhaps a half-dozen other people who all want to see their own designs
chosen; if you want your design to be the one that gets built you need to be able to express your ideas with enthusiasm.
Besides, car companies are looking for people they can groom to progress; people who will eventually be able to steer
projects. You can't do that if you can't communicate effectively."
In proving that ability, "I think the Tü project was significant," David recalls.
(Tü, the Italian slang for you,
was the name of Rob and David's prototype.) "Even (then), the school didn't necessarily condone its construction - I
believe they didn't want a precedent set of building full-size vehicles for the final thesis."
Art Center's Geneva, Switzerland campus seems to have a different philosophy, and appears genuinely proud
of the full-size Lotus Echo built by students Urs Rahmel (now at Volkswagen), Carsten Aengen-heyster (who landed a
job with Nissan, Germany) and Martin Uhlarik (later hired for the new Skoda studio outside Prague). Inspired by
Colin Chapman's 1957 Lotus Seven, the Echo's brief was to build a modern-day successor to that car.
According to Lotus Chief Designer Julian Thomson, "Many have tried to improve on the Lotus Seven but no
one has succeeded as well as these three students. They prepared a good brief and have interpreted it successfully; the
result is a very professional effort, complete to a notably high standard. They have succeeded in capturing the essence of
the original Seven in a very forward-looking interpretation."
From research and early brainstorming to the completion of the finished Echo took a mere eight months, just
like the Tü. Art Center (Europe) Director Uwe Bahnsen, who had a long and distinguished career at Ford and continues
a
passion for amateur auto racing, says "The achievement speaks for itself. Sound research and project preparation
have resulted in an exciting interpretation of a credible solution to the objective."
Bahnsen is now leading a program that not only exposes students to working manufacturers but also actively
taps the industry for resources and assistance. The Echo team was invited by Group Lotus to their Hethel, England
headquarters to discuss the project, and Lotus also provided foam and many other construction materials. Michelin France
produced a set of tires specially cut to the students' design, while BBS Germany came through with the wheels. Max
Meyer provided the paint and also sent their top sprayer from Italy to shoot the car; the Touring Club Suisse donated
transportation from the studio to the paint shop. All of these relationships lowered the students' costs, elevated the quality of
their product and exposed them to realistic working environments. Perhaps equally important, however, the interaction
between students and suppliers built working relationships that the alumni may be able to tap in the future.
More recently, Reynard Racing Cars Ltd. actively
sponsored a project for Art Center (Europe) students: a
2-seater road car aimed directly at the racing enthusiast. The design shown was created largely in CDRS by Marc Collins
and Stefan Jansson, who proposed a lightweight, low-cost machine just 148 inches long. Its sheet-aluminum
monocoque chassis would have low-cost fiberglass body panels on top and be powered by a small, powerful mid-mounted engine.
Back in Pasadena, a poster of Ed "Big Daddy" Roth and his Beatnik Bandit hotrod provided Bauer and
Shumate with inspiration while Kawasaki coughed up a lightweight liquid-cooled ZX-11 motorcycle engine for the Tü project.
According to David's diary he has easily put 1300 hours in the car, and estimates that Rob's time and that of
all the friends, suppliers, fellow students and contractors who helped probably adds up to another 4000. "And that
doesn't even count running around for parts, etc."
For most of the other pieces the students, greatly assisted by Art Center Assistant Director of Admissions
Debbe Goldstein, turned to members of the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA), and the ultimate source
list reads like a who's who of the aftermarket.
David Shumate again: "The construction of the Tü made it obvious to the studio people - those who
recommend the hirings and who came to our senior show - that we had the required energy, drive, commitment and
hands-on experience in packaging and building a car."
Thus, while many of his fellow students went begging, Rob Bauer was quickly hired by Ford and sent straight
to the Advanced Concept Studio. Ford has a College Graduate program that puts all new hires on a 2-year rotation
through all the studios in the company, including those in Europe. Rob's next stop will be in the Light Truck Studio where
they do the F150, Ranger, Explorer, etc.
David, meanwhile, approached Kia (after scanning Art Center's monthly Employment Bulletin) and was
hired. The studio has a chief designer, an engi-neer/manager, four designers, two modelers and a secretary. Nick Pugh,
who says he thoroughly enjoyed his time at Art Center, interned at Oldsmobile and Renault but quickly realized he
would never work in an OEM studio: "It was far too structured for me, and when I graduated I actually turned offers down.
I knew I couldn't last."
Rob expected to be put in a corner at Ford, but within two months he was one of six designers asked to
submit sketches for Ford's next major concept car. Amazingly, Rob's idea was ultimately picked for development: "It
was wonderful to be taken seriously," he says, "but to be honest it's also scary. Art Center didn't prepare me for this.
There, everything was focused on the individual; here it's all teamwork, and very political. The studio chief wants one thing,
the manager wants another...who do you choose? You have to make them
all happy. Suddenly I'm directing seven
modelers, and every minute they ask me questions like, `Do you want a radius here?' And if I say I do, they immediately come
back with, `How big? Eighth of an inch? A quarter?' I never expected this - it's frightening, and it's difficult. It's like trying
to draw with somebody else holding the pencil."
Possibly Nick Pugh had already felt a presentiment of this. Rather than entering an established studio he
followed his own route after Art Center. When I first met him as a recent grad Pugh was obsessed with the Xeno, an
alt-fuel concept car he intended to build himself. His enthusiasm was contagious, and I eagerly helped him get the
project publicized, sponsored and displayed in the Concept Center at SEMA's annual Las Vegas trade show. In the ensuing
years, however, the Xeno has taken a backseat as Nick and his partners have explored different venues. "At school you
think you're always going to be steering the ship, but once you get out into the real world you soon realize that the tail
is wagging you. That car was my life once, but I soon saw it as the means to an end, not the end in itself.
"I wanted to create rolling sculpture, but that's a joke when you're trying to raise money - nobody would take
us seriously." Pugh didn't let it end there, however. "Realizing that compressed natural gas is the only viable alternative
fuel with any current potential, we developed some solutions (for the Xeno) that also applied to real-world problems -
like where to put the gas tanks and how to maximize their capacity. Now, suddenly
everybody was interested."
Which doesn't mean that Nick's path is any more clear today than it was five years ago. "Right now the rent
is coming from the entertainment industry - the only place I know where you can work harder and longer than you did at
Art Center! I design characters, clothes, complete sets, even vehicles; whatever they want. It pays well.
"Of course what's really exciting me now is the World Wide Web; what you can't do here, you
can do there. It's pure aesthetic pleasure. The startup costs are $350, compared with $1 million for the car - it's
ridiculous, and it's...!"
Before I know it, Nick's enthusiasm has infected me again: Never before have I heard anybody describe
the Internet with such unabashed excitement. Never before have I ever felt the slightest inclination to go infosurfing, or
heard myself saying "Cars? Who cares anything about
cars!? I'm gonna get me a mouse!"
Even if you're blessed with Pugh's infectious enthusiasm or Rob and David's serious drive, however, there's
no doubt that the traditional 1-2 punch of design school and OEM job hunting are tough rows to hoe. It's costly, it's
hard work, and when you're all done there are still less than 2500 positions open at any one time worldwide. Meanwhile
the various schools around the world are graduating about 200 more hopefuls each spring, and out of those who even
get a job very few indeed will follow the universal dream of designing concept cars and enthusiast machines - most will
potter around with Geo Metro doorhandles and the like from their first day until retirement. Just like its TV namesake, the
real world is not all that it appears.
So You Still Won't Give Up, Eh?
Well, suit yourself; Transportation or Industrial Design applicants to the following schools must generally
submit drawings and sketches of original concepts for transportation products such as automobiles, trucks, buses and
motorcycles. Evidence of drafting and technical drawing skills should be displayed, and the inclusion of informal
sketches showing idea development - either loose or in notebook form - is usually recommended. Prices, actual portfolio
requirements, previous beneficial experience, etc. varies by institution; contact each directly for a catalog and details.
Art Center College of Design 1700 Lida Street
Pasadena CA 91103-1999,
USA
(818) 396-2200; 405-9104 fax
Art Center (Europe) College of Design Chateau de Sully Route de Chailly 144
Case Postale 32
1814 La Tour-de-Peilz,
SWITZERLAND
(+41) 21 944-6464; -1144 fax
Center for Creative Studies 201 East Kirby
Detroit MI 48202,
USA
(800) 952-ARTS
Cleveland Institute of Art 11141 East Boulevard
University Circle
Cleveland OH 44106,
USA
(800) 223-4700
Coventry Polytechnic Gosford Street
Coventry CV1 SR2,
ENGLAND
(+44) 1203-838520
Facolia Architettura Palermo,
Istituto De Disegno Industriale Via Maqueda 175
90100 Palermo,
ITALY
(+39) 91-286041
Ohio State University,
Dept. of Industrial Design 128 North Oval Mall
Columbus OH 43210,
USA
(614) 292-6746
Pratt Institute 200 Wiloughby Avenue
Brooklyn NY 11205,
USA
(800) 331-0834
Royal College of Art Kensington Gore
London SW7 2EU,
ENGLAND
(+44) 1584-5020
Institute of Design,
Umeå University (Tuition Free) S-901, 87 Umeå,
SWEDEN
(+46) 90 16-6996; -6697 fax
