1. Why did you become a car designer?
Ever since I’ve been able to think, I’ve always drawn things – from
cartoons and houses to automobiles. I was particularly fascinated by
the varying characters and forms of expression that vehicle design can
convey. I grew up in Poland, where the profession of automobile
designer didn’t exist at the time. That’s why I started by studying
architecture. I wanted to work creatively and design something. The
desire to turn my passion into a profession stayed with me. Back then,
I came across pictures of Marcello Gandini’s designs for Bertone in
the press by chance. Futuristic, powerfully wedge-shaped vehicles from
the 1970s, the Fiat X 1/9 and Autobianchi A112 Bertone Runabout, which
he had drawn in very architectural perspectives. As a young
architecture student I tried out the same thing – and it was
immediately clear to me that that was what I wanted to do. I found out
which universities offered degrees in automotive design. There weren’t
very many: London, Los Angeles and Pforzheim. I chose Pforzheim – and
was accepted there.
2. What inspires you?
I find inspiration in different experiences, in moments when you feel
like you’re facing the imaginary future. One example is when I first
visited Zaha Hadid’s BMW plant in Leipzig: I was impressed by the
expressiveness and emotion that the building contains. Although at
first glance it is “only” concrete, there is so much it promises. It
has a sense of expectation or promise that there is a future in which
emotion and technology can be combined. I am also touched by the
beauty of technical masterpieces from the past – whether boats,
vehicles or other machines. When I see old mechanical engineering art,
I immediately feel like reaching for a pen and drawing something
myself. The suspension of a vintage Bugatti is pure inspiration for
me. It is also inspiring to be able to create something new, as is the
very process itself – i.e. drawing per se. In the BMW Group and
specifically for MINI, I get to work in a team in which a great deal
of creative work is produced. The drawings on the walls in our studio
alone are a daily source of inspiration.
3. What is the key to creating a vehicle design that won’t
capture the spirit of the times until five years into the future?
As an automotive designer, you actually have to live a few years
ahead of your environment in terms of the work you do. The vehicles
we’re currently working on are the brand’s future. So we ask
ourselves: what kind of character should they have? How do we create a
“wow” effect? And what is aesthetic? We see that aesthetic appeal and
taste are often part of a process that thrives on disruptions. So we
want to create precisely these disruptions, which are then seen as
new, innovative and ground-breaking. Being able to capture this
requires a mixture of experience and talent – and that’s what seek to
drawn on at MINI.
4. What is typical of MINI as far as you are concerned?
MINI has two sides for me: on the one hand, the brand has a powerful
connection with its history and British origins. On the other hand it
is also modern and innovative. This is precisely what makes the MINI
identity so fascinating as I see it. MINI is likeable, positive and
open. This makes it easy for any driver to establish a direct
relationship with the product. At the same time, MINI is
self-confident and individual. For me, this combination makes the
vehicle and the brand unique. Of course, it also results in high
customer expectations – and rightly so. As a design team, we see it as
our task to continually fill the space between tradition and modernity
with new life in an authentic way.
5. What will a
MINI look like in the future?
The future is something positive for me. That’s what drives us all
here. A lot is changing and in a state of flux: I see great
opportunities in this that can be drawn on for the purpose of good
design. MINI already has various characters that will continue to
change. There is a whole MINI family. We’re always thinking about what
else might be added. I strongly believe that a MINI will retain its
sympathetic expression. To exaggerate somewhat: even if it were to
become a self-driving box, the experience in a MINI would always be
very personal and radiate sympathy. Just what form that would take is
what we’re working on. The MINI experience has to be charged with
optimism: when you see your MINI again in the morning, you instantly
sense that it’s probably going to be a good day.
To be specific: for me, MINI will definitely remain emotional in the
future, despite the ubiquitous process of digitalisation, or indeed
precisely because of it. Interaction with a MINI will be personal and
above all positive. It will make you smile. Perhaps a MINI will
welcome its driver from the outside in the future – because it has
active media projection surfaces on its exterior. The interior will
also offer completely new possibilities for personalisation through digitalisation.
6. You were involved in pre-development and helped create the
new design language for BMW, among other things. To what extent will
you renew exterior design with MINI?
Ongoing development of a brand’s design style is always a process,
not something that is decided on overnight and then implemented. With
every project, you take one step at a time, consistently driving the
renewal forward. Demands in terms of individual mobility are
constantly growing: as designers, our everyday work is defined by
challenges such as legal requirements and the prerequisites of new
technologies. Autonomous driving and the integration of the sensors
and connectivity required are examples of this. But we also have to
take account of ecological and social developments that have an impact
on the design of the future. What is important here is that MINI must
continue to be recognisable in hallmark fashion but in line with
contemporary style. As you can imagine, that’s no minor undertaking.
7. The MINI brand recently launched the first all-electric
MINI, the MINI Cooper SE. Does the exterior design of a MINI with
electric drive differ from one with a conventional combustion engine?
Electric mobility represents a technological leap that involves
completely different technical requirements. The drive system is
relatively small, but the energy storage system is still very large.
This means we have significantly different requirements in terms of
installation space here, which at the same time give us the
opportunity to rethink the car’s proportions. And of course we want to
continue to create a typical MINI style. The MINI Cooper SE already
shows the direction this might take, as a first small step. It
combines the familiar MINI face with a refreshed aesthetic that
appears cleaner and quieter. Its front section is almost completely
closed since there are no components that need to be cooled and no
other components that need cooling elsewhere as compared to the
combustion model. The clear, generous surfaces give it a modern look.
At the same time, they improve aerodynamics, thereby increasing range.
8. To what extent will autonomous driving change the design of
a MINI in the future?
The effects will be similar to those of electromobility, but their
appearance will be significantly different. Of course, the interior in
particular will change significantly, simply because you suddenly have
the opportunity to do something different while travelling. But this
change will be reflected on the outside, too. Let’s take the typical
MINI face, for example – one of the most important MINI features for
me. Today there are two round, friendly headlamp “eyes”. But this
might be a subject of debate in the future when vehicles drive
autonomously. After all, headlamps only exist so that we as drivers
can see ahead. An autonomous vehicle will no longer need them.
Instead, it will use a large number of sensors that need to be
integrated. We can also rethink window surfaces. When do I want or
need to see something, when is this not the case? The vehicle could
adapt to the situation.
9. What impact will connectivity have on MINI exterior design
in the future?
Connectivity will make mobility much easier for us in the future.
Today we talk a lot about the future use of artificial intelligence to
support people while they’re driving – whether for performing driving
tasks or other activities such as booking a hotel. But there are
possibilities on the exterior, too. In the case of shared mobility, a
connection to the vehicle could make personalisation possible. The
appearance of the vehicle might change as soon as I’m on my way to it,
for example. We suggested this scenario in the MINI VISION NEXT 100
three years ago. We’re talking about active surfaces, for example:
what is painted sheet metal today could be an active media input
surface in future, reflecting moods or conveying specific messages.
10. What do you want for the future of MINI design and how do
you see your role as Head of Exterior Design MINI?
I hope that people will continue to talk about MINI icons in the
future. Just as the MINI is already an icon today, the MINI of the
future should also have this quality. I would like a MINI to still be
immediately and authentically recognisable, trigger positive emotions
and perhaps also have an impact on other design areas. So generally
speaking: the challenge is to retain the iconic character traits of a
MINI and translate them into the new technoid world – so that a MINI
doesn’t become a soulless, self-propelled capsule in the future. I
have the privilege of being able to work on this as part of a highly
motivated international team, and I seek to give these creative minds
the opportunity to develop their ideas, turning them into reality in
the form of products. After all, the greatest experience for a
designer is to actually see their own design in a vehicle on the road.
That’s what I want to contribute to.
Thank you very much for the interview!
In the event of enquiries please contact:
BMW Group Corporate Communications