In the unlikely case the name Frank Stephenson doesn’t ring a bell, he’s the man behind some of the world’s most iconic car designs of the 21st century.
His portfolio is an eclectic mix of automobiles that includes the modern-day MINI and Fiat 500 city cars, first-generation BMW X5 (E53), Maserati Coupé and Spyder (Tipo M138), Ferrari F430, and most of McLaren’s current lineup.
He also created the Maserati MC12 homologation special and track-exclusive Ferrari FXX, among other vehicles. So which of these models do you think Frank Stephenson is most proud of? As it turns out, it’s the reinvented MINI Hatch/Hardtop that debuted at the 2000 Paris Motor Show. Why is that?
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One of the basic principles of the 2001 MINI’s design was the three-tiered structure
Stephenson himself explains in a new video on his newly-started YouTube channel. Kicking off a web series titled ‘How I Designed…’, the video offers a rare insight into how the mind of a designer works – in this case, one of the most influential in the business.
“The first episode shows perhaps my most iconic design, the MINI Cooper, that hadn’t previously been altered for over 40 years! It was an incredible project to work on and in this episode I’ll be talking you through the process of how this brilliant car came to be,” Stephenson writes in the description of the video.
In this video, as well as all the others that will follow, Stephenson talks about the creative process behind his designs while sketching each of those cars for viewers. It’s a refreshing video, to say the least, so sit back and let Frank introduce you to the fascinating and challenging world of car design. While you’re at it, make sure you subscribe to his channel because more similar videos are in the pipeline.