After 17 years with BMW, Chris Bangle has handed in his resignation. According to the press statement below, 52-year-old Bangle will be pursuing personal “design-related endeavours beyond the auto industryâ€.
The vacant Director of BMW Group Design position will be filled by 44-year-old Adrian van Hooydonk, with immediate effect. Van Hooydonk has been Bangle’s right-hand man since 2004 and has been with BMW since 1992, including a five year stint with BMW subsidiary DesignworksUSA.
Bangle’s “flame†inspired designs have polarised opinions and whipped enthusiasts into a lather who are either staunchly for or against his results. However, design should challenge convention. And good design should change convention. Chris Bangle has done both.
Of course, it is fair to say that not all results released under Bangle’s tenure as BMW’s Head of Design have been successes, the original E65 7 Series being one example. However, other examples, such as the E60 5 Series and the E85 Z4, leave behind an enduring legacy of sharp modernism that will influence the industry for some time, even if other designers may not admit as much.
Chris Bangle has helped to bring commentary on design, and therefore appreciation of design, to a broader, more mainstream audience. Despite some failures along the way, he deserves respect, acknowledgement and gratitude for doing so.
Source: BimmerFile
