Tesla Roadster
Today, car design is just as intricate and telling as the architectural style of a home. We have spoken to six top professionals in the design and architecture world about their car choices as they relate to their personal design philosophies. Some drive cars that define their principles, while others point to dream cars that aptly reflect their design philosophies.
BARRY DIXON
Interior Designer, Barry Dixon, Inc.
Warrenton, Virginia
Mercedes 500SL
What type of car to do you drive today? Tell us why you chose this car. I have two cars. I have a Range Rover and a 500SL Mercedes Convertible. This is actually my seventh Range Rover. It’s practical for my use, it’s hardy and it has great longevity. I got the convertible because I wanted a small, sporty vehicle.
What features particularly interest you and how do you incorporate your own design principles into the selection of your own automobile? I like how the Range Rover is methodically designed with simple lines. It’s also important to me to have real materials. The Range Rover uses genuine materials like real leather, varnished wood, and metal. I don’t like fake things; there is a clean honesty in a Range Rover. I chose timeless, quality elements. I pick a car like I would pick a sofa. I would make sure it was made of luxurious material, something that would last but is beautiful to live with.
In regards to my sports car…I am six foot four, and I had read that basketball players were buying the 500SL Mercedes convertible because it allows you to sit low with full extension.
What is your dream car? What about the design of this car inspires you? I think the Lexus 460L would be the marriage of my two cars. Elegant and timeless. Quality is integral.
MARTA HANSEN, AIA LEED AP
President, Hansen Architects
Annapolis, Maryland
Porsche Cayman S
What type of car to do you drive today? Tell us why you chose this car. A Porsche Cayman S. The Porsche is a classic, elegant car that is beautifully engineered.
What features particularly interest you and how do you incorporate your own design principles into the selection of your own automobile? “Form follows function” is a famous quote in modern architecture and the Porsche achieves this with fine German engineering. This is evident in the visibility of the brake calipers, the aerodynamic shape, the engine placed just behind the driver making the car perfectly balanced, and the sense of minimalism in its exterior form and interior detailing. I have a white Porsche with a black interior. My car combines modernism and classicism, something I hope my architecture achieves.
A Porsche does what a car is supposed to do, which is drive responsively, just as a building needs to function well to be truly beautiful. Its looks achieve a lot with very little effort, which is the definition of elegant. “Less is more” is deceptively difficult to achieve but exquisite when done well.
What is your dream car? What about the design of this car inspires you? The Aston Martin DB9 is one of the most beautiful cars ever made and is very responsive to drive. Its lines are long and low, it is hand built with a nameplate of the individual maker, and the interior is minimally detailed with just the right accent of wood.
GREG WIEDEMANN, AIA
Principal, Wiedemann Architects, LLC
Bethesda, Maryland
BMW 3 Series Coupe
What type of car to do you drive today? Tell us why you chose this car. I drive a 3 Series BMW Coupe and have an older Porsche 911 Targa t-top convertible. I believe that the BMW Coupe is a great balance of performance and economy. The Porsche design is timeless.
What features particularly interest you and how do you incorporate your own design principles into the selection of your own automobile? The BMW Coupe is very well designed; ergonomically, everything seems to be in the right place. It incorporates technological advances in a well-considered design. It creates a good fit for the driver, which is precisely what we try to do with our designs for our clients.
The fact that I haven’t been able to part with my Porsche I suppose is emblematic of my love of older homes. Our work strives to find a timelessness solution, one that is rooted in basic principles, not the most recent fad. The BMW 3 Series has a design that is fun to drive, embodies technological innovation, and strikes a perfect balance between performance and economy…it is those principles of comfort, good fit, and economy of means that guides our design work.
What is your dream car? What about the design of this car inspires you? I guess the Porsche Carrera and the Aston Martin DBS remain my dream cars from a current exterior design point of view, but I am excited by the potential of cars like the Tesla and the Fisker Karma vehicles that are coming on line with new technological innovation.
SUMAN SORG, FAIA
Principal, Sorg Architects
Washington, DC
Mini Cooper Clubman
What type of car to do you drive today? Tell us why you chose this car. I have a Mini Cooper and a CLK500 Mercedes convertible. I live in the city and the Mini is a little car that fits into my historic garage (formerly used for horse carriages in the 19th century) and can squeeze in between cars when I have to park it. I bought the convertible to drive down to our house on the Eastern Shore and other long distance travel.
What features particularly interest you and how do you incorporate your own design principles into the selection of your own automobile? The Mini has two sunroofs, one on the driver’s seat and one on the passenger seat. Even though it’s a small car, the way the light comes through the roof is ingenious and makes the car feel roomier.
The Mercedes has a wood dash and is very simply done, not very ornate. I was interested in the graphics in the navigation and the clock as well as the design of the letters on the speedometer. It all adds to the aesthetic of what I was looking for. My own work is minimalist and understated so I was very interested in simple and minimal lines.
What is your dream car? What about the design of this car inspires you? My dream car is the Avanti designed in the 1950s, it has real architectural lines. Its appearance is perfectly constructed. I am also interested in the Tesla Roadster because it’s an electric car and good for the environment. The design of it is low to the ground and quiet and looks like a sports car.
ROBERT COLE, AA Dip., RIBA
Principal, ColePrévost
Washington, DC
Audi A4 Advant
What type of car to do you drive today? Tell us why you chose this car. We have a Audi A4 Avant. We were looking for a small, fuel efficient, well-designed station wagon.
What features particularly interest you and how do you incorporate your own design principles into the selection of your own automobile? The design is simple, cohesive, and beautifully detailed inside and out. The car is not only carefully designed but also well-crafted. Everything fits together well. I love the way the doors close: quietly. We are waiting for Audi to come out with a hybrid engine.
What is your dream car? What about the design of this car inspires you? I am not a car person. Whereas I believe the Bugatti Royale with its long, exquisite line is one of the most beautiful cars ever made, I prefer the smaller, sports car Bugatti T35 or the later T54, designed by Ettore Bugatti. Beneath the deceptively elegant, simple shape these racing roadsters were moving pieces of hand-made jewelry. Pure beauty incarnate.
SCARLETT BREEDING, AIA
Principal, Alt Breeding Schwarz Architects
Annapolis, Maryland
Lexus 450 Hybrid
What type of car to do you drive today? Tell us why you chose this car. I drive a 450H Hybrid Lexus. It has great style, good performance and conserves energy. It is built really well with the latest technology with a GPS system, hands-free telephone, keyless entry and goes from zero to 60 in five seconds. It’s very sleek, honest, and has great style.
What features particularly interest you and how do you incorporate your own design principles into the selection of your own automobile? I feel good driving a car that I know is saving energy. This car gives you good data and tells you if you are driving sensibly. A lot of what we do in our design work both in commercial and residential incorporates sustainable building materials, using renewable products, and geothermal energy, so there is a similar philosophical connection with my car choice.
What is your dream car? What about the design of this car inspires you? I guess my dream car would be an all-electric car that didn’t use gasoline at all. People are really starting to buy energy conserving products. I live [close to] and walk to work and that is my biggest contribution to the environment.
Today’s cars synthesize art, design, and the latest technology and reflect some of the most common design principles from prominent architects and interior designers in the Bay region. By applying their own design principles to their automotive selection, these gifted technicians marry the best of both worlds in home and auto design.
Jennifer K. Dansicker is the Special Projects Editor for ChesapeakeHome.
Contacts:
Alt Breeding Schwarz Architects: absarchitects.com or 410-268-1213
Barry Dixon, Inc: BarryDixon.com or 540-341-8501
ColePrévost: coleprevost.com or 202-234-1090
Hansen Architects: hansenarchitects.net or 410-349-2202
Sorg Architects: sorgarchitects.com or 202-393-6445
Wiedemann Architects, LLC: wiedemannarchitects.com or 301-652-4022
