The birth of a Dream
Fine Design for Fine Arts (2013)
I studied Fine Arts because there was no other Design career in my city, and I had no other choice. I chose Fine Arts because I wanted to improve my skills in Drawing and Design, so I thought it would be worth it.
During the four years, I related all the projects to the automotive field. From a painting of a car, a sculpture about the spirit of a car, a video of 4 vehicles as if they were friends… And the Final Project in Automotive Design. Not all the professors understood my intentions, but the ones that did, really taught me a lot, and allowed me to invest and develop new versions of cars.
I always liked drawing cars, but maybe I took it seriously since my older brother and I used to modify cars. Now, I was finishing my Fine Arts studies and I had the opportunity to do the project I liked, and prove to myself that I was good enough to design vehicles. If you want to find out, keep scrolling down, you will enjoy all the details.
THEORETIC PART
At first, research and research. I made a book of 150 pages in A3 size (to summarize all the information) about the heritage of Automotive and Design. I studied the birth of a car, the history of thousands of brands all over the world (from the 5 continents), the brands, the car shows, the car designers, the motoring, the media press… Everything to have the knowledge and the present history to develop my own designs.
But we’re not here to talk theory and read long texts. So let’s find out what a previous designer did. Let’s start with the first design, the prototype, to understand the brand.
— WILLE
CONCEPT CAR
— INSPIRATION
GUILLERMINA NAME
& PROTECTION
My name is Guillermina, in English Williamina and in German Wilhelmine. Let’s decipher this:
Wilh: Determined
-elm-: Helmet, Protector
-ine: Female
Of all the meanings, I came up with the name Wille for this concept car, which in German means determination. This car is a female guardian, which has a helmet-inspired front design and a sword-based rear design. The wheel trims are shaped like a hurricane, because she is the strongest, fastest and bravest fighter. The sketches I made, looking for a shape for this car, are very different in shape but not in essence.
— EFEBO
HATCHBACK
— INSPIRATION
YOUTH
The first body: a utility car. I wanted to design a car for young people. A car they would always remember as their first car, the one that taught them how to drive and park, and the one that gave them their first freedom, party and who knows if their first kiss. I was looking for a cheerful design, with some customizable parts, and available with five or three doors to take friends or the dog.
— MONDO
MINIVAN
— INSPIRATION
FAMILY
Mondo is the family, the great hero that protects children and grandparents. I wanted a clean design, but at the same time a complex vehicle, with numerous elements to increase active and passive safety. It’s just a car in development to show some possibilities to explore and study. That’s the main objective of this car: research and safety.
— CANTERO
4X4
— INSPIRATION
MUM´S SURNAME
I have always loved 4x4 bodies in all their forms and designs. I love them all. But what is the relationship between the car and the name? My mother’s surname, Cantero, comes from the profession of stonemason, who builds castles, palaces and cathedrals. So I decided to create an SUV because a good Cantero can inspire a stronger 4x4, ready to drive off-road and overcome all the challenges we want, like a hero!
Also, my mother’s family comes from a mountain village, so it fits perfectly to portray the whole family with a sublime 4x4.
— IBIA
SEDAN
— INSPIRATION
DAD´S SURNAME
The sedan is also inspired by my father’s surname, Valdivia. Its meaning is Valle de Ibia, where the first Sir Valdivia was born, and the surname. I thought that the first Sir could inspire an elegant car, a majestic black sedan. At home we have a blue VW Passat, and before that we had an older one, so I knew how beautiful and superb they were.
In this case, my father’s family comes from a beach town, so it’s the opposite of a 4x4. The sound and movement of the waves should be felt in the design.
— RAMÉ
Sports car
— INSPIRATION
POWERED CONCEPT CAR
We come to the last body design with the explosive version of the concept car. Why Ramé? Ramé means chaos and beauty at the same time. That sports car must be as beautiful as its father, the concept car, but more chaotic in the sense that it has to be powerful and faster, in a design context.
Catalogue
Sedan, Sport Sedan & Wagon chasis
I had a catalog of a sedan at home because we brought it some time ago. I studied it and decided to create my own catalog for the sedan. I didn’t know how to do the graphic design because there was a lot of information, but, I focused on everything related to the design in three bodies:
-Sedan: accessories such as wheel trim, the upholstery, the roof rack, the hitch bike rack, the car key, paints and colors, engines…
-Sport sedan: front and rear bumper design.
-Wagon: the rear design of the trunk and roof trim.
Eminenza
Branding
I presented the Final Project without a brand name. Even any car had a name. I am very bad at looking up names, and all the names in this project were assigned afterwards. I explained one by one why each car was named, but not the main brand name. But let’s analyze the shape: the brand logo means the union of a person and a car. The person is with his arms up, celebrating, and the side views are the headlights of the car. You can understand it all with the following animation.
To understand the name you have to go back a few years. I had a special friend with whom I didn't talk much, but he would inform me of my achievements in automotive design, such as winning a national competition or when I got a job. One day he talked to my mother and told her that I was a leading figure in design. She told me about that conversation and I remember her opinion made me happy, because I didn't know she admired my work so much. That made me reflect on my feelings and thoughts. I always thought I was good but that I had to improve, because there is always room for improvement. But he believed in me, as did my family, my friends and many people I don't know personally, but who support my work. He said I was an eminence, so I took him at his word.
So I chose the word and translated it into several languages:
-Eminencia
-Eminence
-Eminenz
-Eminenza
-Itibar
-Emininsje
-Fremtredende
-Höjd
…
There was a wide variety of choices and, as you can see, the Romance languages are very similar, so I chose Eminenza because I loved the sound of it.
The results
And what Fine Art teachers said after that
I did not have the opportunity to present the project at an exhibition. I sent the 150-page book and the sales catalog to my professor and the university jury. A few days later, my professor told me that I had passed the project with an A, but the jury said something that broke my heart. I didn’t get an honors degree because my project was not related to Fine Arts, like others that my classmates had presented, so I only got an A.
At the time I was angry, but later I understood that my project was Design and not Arts, but I would have liked the teachers to have valued it more. Of course, I didn’t study Fine Arts because I loved Art, no, I only liked cars and Design! They only looked at the subject matter, not the beauty of the designs. My teacher told me that she was proud of me and that she didn’t care, because it was only the grade. And that’s exactly what I did. In my mind, I knew that the project was one of the best in the whole university, and I would show it to the whole world!
