Interior Motives China Conference 2010: Day 1

Despite Europe being grounded due to volcanic ash, the third Interior Motives China conference got underway in Beijing with a record number of delegates and speakers – proof, as if it were needed, that this event is now one of the most important in the global car design calendar. This year's theme was 'New brands and the search for a design identity', and among the audience were young Chinese designers keen to learn more about international car design techniques, as well as veteran western designers hoping to gain a deeper understanding of the market they are creating vehicles for. 

Session 1: The Market for Design

Edward Wong, Director of Transportation Design at China Central Academy of Fine Arts (CAFA), set the mood for the conference in his long, flowing 'Chang San' robe (very traditional Chinese attire). He opened the conference and invited panellists to share their views on what China's needs are and explore what makes the market so unique.  

Shan Wei, Styling Director at Beijing Automotive Technology Center (BATC), part of the Beijing Auto Group, emphasized the intrinsic qualities inherent in the Chinese mind and how these differ to the values championed in the West – a theme reiterated throughout the first day of the conference. Eastern, oriental cultures prefer balance and modesty, he said, rather than speed and competitiveness.

But China must still address the large gap in needs and tastes between the sprawling rural population and its urban city dwellers, said Wei. "We still need to attach more importance to the design of small vehicles – so we should spend more energy on concentrating on designs for Tier Three and Tier Four markets, as this will be the main pillar of growth." (China's interior cities are often referred to as Tier Three and Four, whereas Shanghai and Beijing are Tier One.)

Double Du, Chief of the Design Team at PSA Peugeot Citroën China, explored the ways in which different countries have influenced the Chinese consumer. "When Japan lost World War II, they suppressed a lot of their traditional Japanese culture and fell under the influence of the United States. They, the Japanese, then in turn influenced the countries they previously occupied," he pointed out.

Fei Fei, Vice Manager of the Design Department at Beiqi Foton Motor Company, delved into China's strong aesthetic identity, specifically the symbols and characters encountered by all Chinese when they learn to read and write. The word for 'car', for instance, developed from a hieroglyph for a cart. "We still have a large amount of treasure in our Chinese culture to build upon," he concluded.

In the lively question and answer session that followed, Double Du stressed that Chinese features should not be overdone when designing cars. "As Chinese we know immediately what is connected to our culture, but foreign designers cannot see what we see as Chinese designers," he added.

Session 2: Brand Identity In Modern China

Friedhelm Engler, Design Director at GM PATAC, began the session by emphasizing how great the speed of change is in China compared to the rest of the world: "The growth in this country is faster than we can develop cars." He insisted that designers need to have a clear vision of what their target market is, and a strong brand definition so that consumers can follow the brand. Pure concepts can help to show how far you can go design-wise while keeping the flavour of the brand, but consistency is key for production cars. For example, interior trim colours, model lines, and marketing need to be consistent across the board.

Ken Ma, Design Director of SAIC Motor, said that although his design center in China is only three years old and is populated entirely by young Chinese designers, market response to the Roewe 550 has been extremely positive. This has set high expectations for the smaller, soon-to-be-launched Roewe 350, which was shown in concept form as the N1.

Ma then quizzed the audience on their perception of the term ‘green', before showing SAIC Motor's vision of sustainable motoring in the form of the YEZ Bionic car, which can drive autonomously and convert CO2 to oxygen. "Don't laugh, we're talking 2030 – the car can drive itself as there will be a smart road system, but you can choose to drive yourself if you want to have some fun," he said.

Continued →

By Namrita Chow