Language?
- Mar 13, 2024
- 3 min read
I have been really eager to do a post about design language and its importance. However, I have been struggling to find a brand that has a great design language that I am actually interested in. Well, I think it has actually been right in front of me for the past month or so...
Mazda
Yes, I know you probably think that it is a strange choice but I honestly think that they have the best design language of and car manufacturer currently on the market (I am not being biased here by the way!). Just have a look at their current range:
The thing that makes Mazda even more unique is the price point. Mazda is a midrange car manufacturer. They don't compete with Mercedes, they compete with Ford, Honda, and these kinds of brands. Their ability to achieve such incredible designs from such a low budget is truly baffling to me. So, for me to understand how Mazda achieve this incredible design language I had to do a bit of research, which mainly involved watching the following video:
Now I don't expect you to watch the full video but if you do I think you will agree with me that it gives a real insight into how Mazda achieve their designs.
The video really emphasised this idea of "Kudo Design" and "Jinba Ittai". These are the two things that inform Mazda's design language the most. "Kudo Design" is the idea of eliminating unnecessary elements to find beauty in space. Simplicity. You really see their exterior designs, long flowing lines that are smooth and unobtrusive. Jinba Ittai is the idea of "Horse and Rider as One". Basically they want you and the car to feel connected, intertwined together by making the driving experience as incredible as possible.
The first thing that struck me was the fact that the video started with a guy clay modelling a car. This usually takes place later on in the design process but Mazda actually use it to inform designs early on. The focus is on the clay modeller to be like an artist, designing with his thoughts and ideas instead of just trying to copy a sketch. The modeller in the video says that his job is to "contribute to the design process" and from what I have read the modellers take great pride in being allowed to do this. By all accounts, Mazda employ the best clay modellers in the world as they understand the importance of viewing a design in the 3D space.
One of the other things I didn't realise Mazda put such a focus into is colour. They try to develop colours that have very high contrast (lots of highlights and shadows). At first I couldn't understand why they would do this. It doesn't really fit with the Kudo Design philosophy but, it is actually done because of Kudo Design. The lack of harsh lines in the car means that it requires a colour that pops. I feel as though the following colours achieve this idea really well:
To focus on what I have talked about so far I want to take a look at the car that I believe best achieves Mazda's design philosophy. The Mazda 3:
Just look at the exterior lines, or actually the lack of them. I only really notice two prominent ones. The line that flows front the top of the grill and through the bonnet is just perfect, it gives really personality to the front of the car and does a great job connecting the form of the grill to that of the bonnet. The line flowing from the wheel arch through the door handles is also great as it splits the side of the car into two distinctive parts (top and bottom). However, the lines aren't actually that prominent, its the Soul Red paint that accentuates them. There are really strong highlights and shadows that the lines create.
Its these simple lines and clever paintwork that are what the Kudo Design Language is all about!
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