Unlike other powerhouses in the auto industry from Germany, Japan and the U.S., Chinese carmakers are still trying to find their way when it comes to design, with a sizable portion of domestic brands simply copying styling elements or even vehicles in whole from Western brands.

There are of course plenty of other vehicle manufacturers from China that are experimenting with designs in a bid to develop their own individual and distinct styles with mixed results.

One designer who is not only closely observing what is going on in China but is also participating in the process of defining the indigenous auto design is Peter Horbury, who last year moved to China to take over the role of senior vice president of design at Geely, Volvo’s corporate sibling under the Zhejiang Geely Holding Group.

At last week’s Auto China 2012 in Beijing, Horbury sat down with Dan Neil from The Wall Street Journal to talk about Chinese culture, arts and of course, the future of auto design.

You can watch the interesting interview in the video that follows below the break.

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