H Holls studied industrial design at Michigan State University and, after his graduation in 1952, worked for GM. Harley Earl took Holls into the Cadillac studio, where he worked on the iconic 1959 Cadillacs with the bullet tail lights. In 1960, Holls was transferred to the Chevrolet studio and was involved in the development of the split-window Corvette. In 1961 he became Chief of Design for Buick and, in this position, largely influenced the design of the Buick Riviera of 1966.
Between 1966 and 1970 he headed up the design of the new Corvette and the first Camaro. In 1970, Holls went to Opel, initially as Chuck Jordan’s assistant, and one year later was promoted to Chief of Design. In 1986 Holls was appointed Director of Design at GM. He retired in 1991. Together with Michael Lamm, he authored the standard publication on American automotive design, A Century of Automotive Style, which was published in 1996.
David Holls 1931–2011 GM Opel Cadillac 1959 Buick Riviera Chevrolet Camaro Opel CD Bitter CD Cadillac STS
Chevrolet Camaro, 1969
The I.De.A Institute was founded as a design company in 1978 by Franco Mantegazza and the architect Renzo Piano following the example of Giorgio Giugiaro’s Italdesign. However, from the very beginning, I.De.A focused not on classic design, but on the development of type series and platform concepts. In 1983, Ercole Spada became Chief of Design, but he left the company again in the mid-1990s. I.De.A
developed a platform concept, initially for the Fiat Group, but Japanese, Chinese, and Indian (Tata) manufacturers were also interested in the expertise. With a staff of over two hundred, I.De.A became the third largest design company in Italy, but struggled financially as a result of the 2007 crisis and was acquired by a financial investor in 2010.
Tata Nano, 2000
Fiat Tipo, 1981
I.De.A Institute 1978 Lancia Fiat Daihatsu Daewoo Tata
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