AutoCritical

During the Mercedes Benz SLS AMG ‘Rare Experiences’ campaign, Mercedes shared a video with us of an interview with automotive designer and Coventry University graduate Mark Fetherston, a long-time senior employee at Mercedes-Benz and designer of the SLS AMG supercar.

Conveying an obvious passion and enthusiasm for the beauty of car design, Mark Fetherston discusses the form, function and design process of the SLS AMG as he enthusiastically sketches the sculptured supercar.

Yep, he sketches right in front of you! Sure, there are underlays, but its just good to see!

For a the design review on the SLS click here

A series that will explore the role of aesthetics in car design.

Aesthetics, as a term, denotes our response to an object through the senses. Such a response can range from something that is aesthetically ‘pleasing’, resulting in a fondness to the object, to something that is aesthetically ‘displeasing’, in which an unpleasant reaction is associated with the object. The way that a viewer determines their opinion on the aesthetics of an object is a result of the combined stimulation of the senses  (sight, sound, touch, taste and smell) and human emotions. When it’s about cars, there is something special and deep about the role aesthetics plays.

Frank Hinder: Drawing, Frank Gehry:Disney Concert Hall, BMW: X-Coupe Concept

Nearly all man made objects have been designed. Some have been designed to a degree with either or both, a function and/or a form. Quite often, it is said that good design has a good balance of form and function, even so, it could be said to be an ‘ignorant’ view upon design and engineering. If objects that are more heavily based on either form or function the other is ignored. Vehicles and transportation are examples of where form and function are used to stimulate senses and emotion to create a viewers opinion on aesthetic values.

Question: How do these images make you feel individually and as a collective?

References:
Stoller, P. “The Taste of Ethnographic Things”, University of Pennsylvania Press, (1989)