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Umea Institute of Design degree show 2010

Earlier this month, Car Design News attended Umea University's annual degree show. Covering student work from the MA Interaction Design, Advanced Product Design and Transport Design programs and the BA Industrial Design program, it was the first exhibition overseen by Umea's new Rector, Anna Valtonen, formerly head of Design Research & Foresight at Nokia. In a departure from the show's traditional format, this year saw keynotes and workshops spread over two days.

Gorden Wagener on how Mercedes is "moving from a traditional luxury brand to a modern luxury brand"

Mercedes' 'home' design studio in Sindelfingen, Germany is housed in an expansive 30,000-square meter building designed by Renzo Piano. The lobby is unassuming, but we're soon through into what Mercedes' grandly calls 'the Vision Room.' It's here that strategic meetings are held with the firm's board, and where we meet Gorden Wagener, Mercedes' head of design since 2008. It's in the Vision Room that Wagener convinced the Mercedes board of the merits of his overarching design philosophy: 'sensual purity'.

Shelby brings back ‘Shelby American' name for performance-car business

Carroll Shelby's performance-car business is returning to its roots. Shelby Automobiles is changing its name to Shelby American--the original banner used by his sports-car business and the historic Le Mans-winning cars in the 1960s. Shelby says the switch is in honor of the 45th anniversary of two of his most famous cars, the 427 Cobra and the Ford Mustang Shelby GT350.