The Istituto Europeo di Design presents the thesis projects of the graduates in Transportation Design for the 2021/22 academic year, the result of the partnership with the Hyundai Europe Design Center. Compact sports vehicles, measuring 4.40 metres in length and powered by a hydrogen powertrain, capable of combining driving pleasure and high performance with sustainable mobility geared towards improving people’s lives.
The challenge set by Hyundai to the students was to interpret the brand vision “Progress for Humanity” i.e. to improve people’s lives by making them easier, safer and more sustainable – through the development of advanced technologies. Ongoing innovation that is not just about the product, but the all-round transformation that is helping Hyundai become a Smart Mobility Solutions Provider, serving people all over the world and sustainable from an environmental, social and economic point of view.
The 43 students, coming from 11 countries and organised into teams, responded to Hyundai’s briefing by working in synergy, under the guidance of IED lecturers and the Hyundai Motor Europe Design Center, represented by Chief Designer Thomas Bürkle, Head of Exterior Design Eduardo Ramirez, Exterior Design Manager and IED Alumnus Nicola Danza and Senior Exterior Designer Davide Varenna.
Young talents can give a crucial contribution into the design development process. Their disruptive point-of-view is able to make the difference, supported by Hyundai’s technological know-how. We are very happy for this new collaboration with IED Turin, during which the students interpreted our brief with great commitment, finally developing very interesting solutions and truly innovative ideas. Developing the design of high-performance models, combining them with an advanced powertrain like the hydrogen one, was a great challenge for the students.
Thomas Bürkle – Chief Designer at Hyundai Motor Europe Design Center
We are proud of the link between the Istituto Europeo di Design and Hyundai, with which we are celebrating our third partnership in the field of Transportation Design projects. When our students’ aptitude for experimentation and innovation meets the technological know-how of a company which, like Hyundai, contributes to training future designers, we see experimentation able to anticipate bold solutions for the new mobility systems of the future.
Paola Zini – Director of IED Turin
The proposals were fully developed for the exteriors and interiors, starting with the initial study phase, brand and market analysis, style research and sketching, through to the final phase of 3D modelling and video rendering. Out of the eleven projects submitted for the thesis discussions, HYDRONE_01, ASKJA and AVA were selected, the three projects with the greatest impact and most in line with the parameters of the assigned brief, contributing to the production of 1:4 scale prototypes.
Straight from the metaverse and a world inspired by gaming comes HYDRONE_01, designed by Sara Conte, Emilio Palmieri, Filippo Checcucci and Francesco Pizzitola. A sporty hatchback, dedicated to real-life and video game driving enthusiasts. Shapes and surfaces with particularly pronounced edges create a low-polygon effect that draws formal inspiration from vintage video games and translates everything into a visionary automotive style. An emptying of the rear results in more than just visual lightness and the dual colours emphasise the two souls of the vehicle.
Designed by Adam Marian Cal, Giorgio Bonetti, Riccardo Seveso and Arthur Brecht Poppe, ASKJA is a crossover hatchback, dedicated to a new concept of sportiness, far removed from the world of track racing, but open to new terrains and an exploration of nature at its most unspoilt, all while respecting the environment, thanks to a zero-emission engine and two external cylinders that can be integrated for long distance travel.
AVA is the name of the concept car by Pietro Artigiani, Federico Boasso, Luca Orsillo and Nicolò Arici. An ultra-compact coupé that succeeds in satisfying the aesthetic demands of sports car enthusiasts, while leaving the technical components and powertrain visible, thanks to an aerodynamic study and an interesting asymmetrical appearance of the front elements, such as the headlamps.
A partnership between IED and Hyundai that dates back to 2014, the year that saw the birth of PassoCorto, the ultra-lightweight sports concept created when students were asked to design their “dream car”, which was presented on a 1:1 scale at the 2014 Geneva Motor Show and at the Fuorisalone in Milan during Design Week that year. In 2018, the same events hosted the result of the second partnership between IED and the Hyundai Europe Style Center: the Kite concept. The result, in this case, was a futuristic, lightweight two-seater electric dune buggy prototype that converts into a single-seater jet ski, also electrically powered.
The projects in partnership with Hyundai were created by: Andrea Abitino (Italy), Nicolò Arici (Italy), Pietro Artigiani (Italy), Fabio Bauducco (Italy), Federico Boasso (Italy), Paola Boccetti (Italy), Giorgio Bonetti (Italy), Adam Marian Cal (Poland), Giuseppe Catalano (Italy), Filippo Checcucci (Italy), Po-Wei Chen (Taiwan), Sara Conte (Italy), Gregorio Gandolfo (Italy), Abelardo Garcia Torres (Mexico), Jaya Deep Guntaka (India), Danilo Gurato (Italy), Gerardo Iorio (Italy), Hancheng Liu (China), Mihael Maximenko (Israel), Abee Danael Tehaie Meherta (Eritrea), Luca Orsillo (Italy), Emilio Palmieri (Italy), Federico Perotto (Italy), Andrea Piazza (Italy), Alessandro Pilato (Italy), Francesco Pizzitola (Italy), Arthur Brecht Poppe (Belgium), Joaquin Ratto Marcos (Italy), Riccardo Seveso (Italy), Fabio Simeone (Italy), Erik Siviero (Italy), Aadyan Rajesh Sonawne (India), Leonardo Stella (Italy), Hengyang Su (China), Pranavkrishna Subha Ramanand (India), Giovanni Tarizzo (Italy), Katia Tinnirello (Italy), Abhishresht Tyagi (India), Can Luca Christoph Unsal (Turkey), Simone Vernier (China), Wenkang Wang (Taiwan), Po-Hsun Wang (Taiwan), Stefano Zangirolami (Italy), graduates from the three-year course in Transportation Design in the 2021/22 academic year from IED Turin, under the guidance of Course Coordinator Michele Albera.
The three-year course in Transportation Design is coordinated by Michele Albera.
The Thesis Project was coordinated by Fulvio Fantolino, Thesis Supervisor, and Michele Albera.
The ASKJA, HYDRONE_01 and AVA 1:4 scale models were produced by Freeland.car, EDAG Italia.
ASKJA, HYDRONE_01 and AVA are presented in the video made by FEZ Film Studio.
