Automakers are always looking for different perspectives to further their objectives. The most obvious way to go about getting fresh ideas is to look to the younger generation of creatives, students who have little or no experience in the business but can look at a product or brand subjectively.
This is the approach Jaguar is taking by sponsoring two concept design projects at the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, CA, and the Academy of Art in San Francisco. Students are tasked with creating a vision for one of two design briefs. The first is the option to create an iconic 2030+ Jaguar sports car – a halo product for the brand — while the second is to envision the future of luxury in a 2+2, four-door sports coupe interior. Jaguar’s design team in Gaydon, UK, set the briefs.
Art Center students will undertake the dream assignment — to design an iconic gasoline powered sports car. Focusing on design language, sculpture and proportion, students will explore future design philosophies for Jaguar that prioritizes form and visual identity. Both interior and exterior concepts will be created in physical and digital form, utilizing the latest in technology and practices.
Last week, Jaguar director of advanced design Julian Thomson and creative director interiors, Alister Whelan, visited both campuses where students and faculty are taking a deep dive into what the Jaguar brand is and what students should take into consideration for their concepts. The designers brought a number of iconic heritage vehicles to Art Center — including the C-Type, D-Type, E-Type and 2015 Jaguar F-Type R Coupe — to tell the story of Jaguar performance derived DNA.
Students at the Academy of Art will work collectively between the two design briefs. The first is to develop an interior environment for halo sports car. The second is to push opulence into new territory by creating an interior cabin for a 2+2 seat configuration in a large four-door coupe.
Design teams will be composed of individuals from four design disciplines: industrial designer, color and materials designer, human machine interface designer and a digital modeling designer. The Academy of Art program will also benefit from Jaguar Land Rover’s Portland facility where technology and interface design are cultivated.
The project will go on through the summer at their respective colleges where, in 12 weeks time, students will have gone from concept sketches to final scale model presentations, both in digital and clay. Jaguar designers will interact with the students and critique each concept over the course of the project.
Instructors will also work closely with the Jaguar team on all elements from inspiration, concept sketches to final design approvals, providing an experience as if in an actual global design studio. Judging will take place at the final review in August.
“Partnering with Pasadena’s Art Center College of Design and San Francisco’s Academy of Art University will be an exceptional design experience for both the students and Jaguar,” says Jaguar design director Ian Callum. “The program will provide unique insight for both design schools and Jaguar as to what performance and luxury may look and feel like in the future.”
It comes as no surprise that Jaguar aims to harness the students’ visions as inspiration to further the company’s design initiatives. With the very fabric of the automotive industry set to change drastically over the course of the next decade, the projects developed by the talented young designers at Art Center and the Academy of Art will undoubtedly influence a whole new generation of products for the British automaker.
We’re looking forward to following their progress and bringing you updates.
