More than 2,000 connoisseurs of past, present and future mobility recently gathered for ArtCenter College of Design’s annual Car Classic under the theme “One of a Kind Vehicles That Stand Alone.”
The college’s alumni include many top automotive designers who returned for this annual celebration to serve as judges, special guests and inspirational speakers. Car Classic fans mingled with these design rock stars while closely inspecting nearly 100 vehicles and motorcycles ranging from vintage to futuristic, funky to eclectic.
Several panel discussions took place throughout the day. GM performance exterior designer Tom Peters waxed poetic about reimagining a classic to create the new Corvette C8.
Designer and custom automotive builder Chip Foose captivated the crowd during a lively conversation with Sonari Glinton, NPR contributor and DeLite! Media founder.
Special guest and ArtCenter loyalist Jay Leno took a deep dive into the current state of electric cars with thought leaders Derek Jenkins, vice president of design at Lucid Motors, and Richard Kim, who heads up design at California startup Canoo. The “loft-inspired” Canoo prototype was one of the more popular designs of the day as was the Lucid Motors Air prototype.
Alumnus and cinematographer Jeff Zwart revealed how he films racecar action in a chat with Freeman Thomas, retired Ford Motor Co. advanced design team leader, and Ross LaManna, chair of ArtCenter’s undergraduate and graduate Film departments.
Geoff Wardle, executive director of ArtCenter’s Graduate Transportation Systems and Design department, lead a future forward discussion about mobility touching on urban planning, the shift away from traditional car usage and design for human needs relevant to modern contexts.
Offering alternative theories about the autonomously-driven automotive future were panel participants, including ArtCenter faculty members Marta Nowak, Richard Pelletier and Lucian Rosca; alumnus Calvin Ku; and students Kathrena Dakwar and Pallavi Gautam.
The event also serves as an informal “open house” with demos taking place in ArtCenter’s shops and technical labs and tours of the campus offered for all attendees. Family-friendly activities included a hands-on sketching workshop and a preview of ArtCenter Online, which recently piloted a six-week online course on the basics of professional car design.
Event partners included Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, Honda, Hyundai and Rusnak. Car Classic media partners were Arroyo magazine, 88.5 FM, 89.3 KPCC Southern California Public Radio, Los Angeles Weekly, Outlook Newspapers, Pasadena Magazine, Pasadena Now, Pasadena Weekly and Petrolicious.
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