Sabine Walter in conversation with ...

Vittorio Strosek, automotive designer

Mr Strosek, what do you love about your job?

Designing cars is my passion. Even as a little boy, I knew that's what I wanted to do. I have been working in this profession for more than 40 years and I will continue to do so for as long as I can. I love the designing, the creative. I love to create and leave my mark on the world. Cars that I design can be found all over the world. My design, the Strosek design, is like a handwriting and has a recognition value: a clear, tidy, almost animalistic design language with innovative ideas.

But it's not only the design that fascinates me. I could also build the car, i.e. implement the design. That's where I differ from many other designers. And I know a lot about aerodynamics. I've spent countless hours in the wind tunnel studying exactly how shapes have to be so that a car's drag is as low as possible and creates more downforce.

When I design cars, I can bring it all together: the demand for aesthetic forms, clarity but also technology and, above all, my knowledge in the field of aerodynamics. That's why I always had and still have a completely free hand when working. So I can let off steam and live the dream I had as a little boy.

What parallels are there to what we do, personality development?

Well, here we are with the dreamer; the dreamer I was as a little boy who wanted to design cars when I grew up. But I didn't just dream about it, I knew deep down that I could become that. I knew I could draw better than most. With this self-confidence, I have developed to where I am today.

The other parallel lies in the cars. Every car is individual, has its own personality. A personality that to some extent also reflects the owner's personality, but also parts of mine, because I design each car as if I were making it for me.

When do you get the best ideas?

In the morning between five and seven. I used to have a pad on my bedside table where I wrote down things that came to me at night.

What will your profession look like in 2050?

We will still be designing cars in 2050. People will still want to get from A to B then. Of course, there will be other drive technologies, new inventions. These will influence the design. From today's perspective, the electric car will be the car of the future. But who knows, maybe one day our car will be powered by hydrogen or safe nuclear energy.

In luxury self-driving cars, the car interior will approximate living rooms or hotel rooms: We will be able to relax and lie down. There will be a TV or computer. The cars will have a bar. You will be able to prepare something to eat.

I am also convinced that design will be reduced even further to function. As fewer people will own their own cars, styling will decline and give way to clear, reduced design.

Vittorio Strosek is a car designer. For more than 40 years, he and his team have been setting trends in terms of design language and quality of workmanship. In addition to his own creations such as the 911 Speedster, Vittorio Strosek works as a design development partner for the automotive industry. He is characterised by his design skills, creativity and knowledge of aerodynamic laws.