TALK WITH BAIC CHIEF DESIGN OFFICER
In October this year, the globally renowned top automotive designer Anthony Lo officially joined the BAIC Design Team as the Global Design VP and Chief Design Officer. What has he experienced in the past two months of work?
Here are 12 Q&A with "Big BAIC" to get closer to Anthony Lo.
[About Work at BAIC]
1.What's your impression of BAIC?
My two months at BAIC have gone by very quickly.I have learned a lot about the company, its culture, and the development process.Everyone has been so welcoming, enabling me to achieve the best possible start at BAIC.I also like the work environment at the modern R&D Center, it has good facilities to perform design tasks effectively.
2.What is the most exciting thing for you to join BAIC?
The most exciting thing for a designer to join a new car company is the freedom to create new design directions that would bring success in the future. China’s automotive industry has seen rapid growth in the last few years. A lot of high quality and technologically advanced products were launched by new and legacy OEMs. I feel this is the right moment to join BAIC Group and turn Design into a driving force, creating successful brands and products.
3.What's your feeling when communicating with the BAIC team?
I met many young and talented designers in the past two months.
I find everyone open-minded, willing to express themselves.
I feel confident that the future is bright after interacting with the young design team. They all want the company to do well and will always do their best.
4.Please reveal your work priorities.
For example, what is the first work of your team?
My priority at the moment is to create design strategies for the BAIC Group brands. A good strategy will become the reference and guiding light for the brand and all products and services within it. The first work under my leadership will be unveiled during the Shanghai Auto Show in 2025.
[About Personal Career]
5.When did you decide to become a designer?
Hong Kong has a unique car culture and there are a lot of car enthusiasts there. Growing up in Hong Kong, I was able to see and experience many iconic cars from Europe. Since I was very young, I love drawing and there were mainly car drawings in my sketch books. In the future career discussion when I was 14, I told my teacher that I wanted to become a car designer. The turning point came after graduating from the Industrial Design course at the Hong Kong Polytechnic, I applied and was accepted at the Royal College Art to study car design.
6.Where does your design inspiration come from？
I attended a lot of classic car events as a judge in Europe and the United States. The opportunities gave me a chance to learn about the history of the brands and each individual cars through their owners. Even though I have seen most of the priceless cars before, I always get emotional when I see them again at a different venue. They were created in different eras when safety regulations were not so stringent. However, there is still a lot we can learn from. In my free time, I would visit galleries and museums to enjoy the latest exhibitions.
7.Do you have a design concept that you believe in?
I believe good design do not happen by chance. Car design, as some other design professions，is a craft that require many years to attain good skills. The process to design a car is one of the most complex creative development processes in the world. I would make sure that we create the design strategy first before we start a project. We should always look holistically first before zooming in to the program.
This is the only way to deliver sustainable growth in the future.
[About Hot Topics]
8.The design of new energy vehicles is becoming more and more homogeneous. What's your opinion on this issue?
I have my own theory about homogeneity in some new energy vehicles. No designer would want to mimic an existing design. However, breakthrough styling would require time to experiment new ideas without worrying about potential failure. In recent years, fast to market was the priority so design time was drastically reduced. With such time constraint, designers and management tend to choose a design that is safe to avoid lack of success in the market. The only way to resolve this issue is to create a separate team to focus on advanced design. Designers can feel free to explore new opportunities, identify future customer needs, and create new concepts without time constraints. The results will form the basis of future production programs.
9.What is the influence of regional culture on design?
There are two facets when looking at influence of regional culture on design. As good design is about creating new solutions to enhance people’s lives, designers need to have deep understanding of local cultures and the challenges consumers are facing. So the first facet is about identifying the needs of customers and provide unique solutions. However, this design may not work well in other regions if the solutions are too focused on local needs. The second one is about integrating local culture, perhaps a part of its history in the design solutions. This could potentially create a product that would reflect local culture and become iconic over time (e.g. London taxi).
10.Which is more important in the field of design, talent or effort?
Both talent and effort are equally important to be successful in the field of design.
11.Can AI replace…
AI tools are used by designers, without full control, to generate random ideas for inspirations. One must understand that design profession is a craft that a designer requires years of training to become good at it. Design development is a collaborative exercise. AI can potentially influence the styling part but the design process is so complex that it is impossible to accomplish good results without a capable team of designers, model makers, and engineers. I do not believe that AI tools can replace designers anytime soon.
12.Many Chinese designers regard you as an example. What do you want to say to them?
I appreciate that designers regard me as an example. One important lesson I learned when I was a beginner was that a designer must sometimes think like an engineer. All your good ideas would go nowhere if they are not feasible for production. At the same time, do not accept technical constraints that are outdated. The key is to explain well to your engineering counterpart why a new solution is crucial for future success of your design. We need modern solutions to meet future customer expectations. One more thing: Design leadership team require as many diverse design proposals and opinions as possible to identify the best solution. As a designer, you need to establish your own opinions and develop your own design approach in the creation process and avoid ‘follow the crowd’.
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