Matthew DeBord This is Me

Education

 Web References

1. 1. artbyte.com

   www.artbytemag.com/mag/apr_may - [Cached]

   Published on: 1/25/2003   Last Visited: 1/25/2003

   by Matthew DeBord
   
   ...
   He received a B.S. in transportation design at the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California. After graduating, he worked at Audi for 14 years, both in Germany and later in California, where he headed the Audi design studio and where, in '94, he designed the VW Concept One, the car that would eventually become the '98 New Beetle. Mays left Audi in 1994 to start an automotive studio with the design and consultancy firm SHR Perceptual Management. While consulting for Ford Motor Company, he so impressed its design chief, Jack Telnack, that when Telnack retired in 1997, Mays was offered his job. Mays currently oversees the design of Ford's seven brands (Ford, Mercury, Lincoln, Mazda, Jaguar, Aston Martin, and Volvo car). The first signs of his imprint were seen at this year's auto shows, where Ford previewed its Thunderbird concept car, which is stunning and echoes design strategies that were successful with the Beetle; the Lincoln Blackwood, a luxury 4-door pickup; and (my) Mercury concept SUV.
   
   So what does Mays bring to automotive design that has, in his words, "done just about every shape in the universe in the last 70 years"?