Porsche designer Pinky Lai says China will be a force in design
Hong Kong-born Pinky Lai designed the legendary Porsche 911 Carrera, as well as the exterior of the Porsche Boxster 987, and the exterior of the first generation of the Porsche Cayman. But Lai, who grew up in Quarry Bay in the 1960s, and spent his teenage years as a free-spirited, slightly hippieish skateboarder, embarked on his remarkable journey through design without a great deal of planning, he told an audience at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) recently.
Hong Kong-born Pinky Lai designed the legendary Porsche 911 Carrera, as well as the exterior of the Porsche Boxster 987, and the exterior of the first generation of the Porsche Cayman. But Lai, who grew up in Quarry Bay in the 1960s, and spent his teenage years as a free-spirited, slightly hippieish skateboarder, embarked on his remarkable journey through design without a great deal of planning, he told an audience at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) recently.
Lai, whose achievements have won him accolades in the car industry, advised students to challenge the norm and keep pushing the parameters of design. “Nothing is permanent, and there is always room for improvement,” he said at the latest edition of the HKUST 25th Anniversary Distinguished Speakers Series.
Lai reminded students that although they should be humble, they should also be fearless in their pursuit of professional achievements. “Keep asking why not, and never just why,” suggested Lai, who was awarded the Design for Asia Lifetime Achievement Award by the Hong Kong Design Centre in December.
Lai described to students, faculty members, and guests of HKUST how his career journey took him from Hong Kong to Italy, where he worked in a shipyard, and as a welder, a metalworker, a woodworker and a draughtsman, before joining the car industry. His adventure began in 1972, when he decided that more interesting opportunities existed overseas than at home, and travelled to Italy on a one-way ticket. Despite speaking no Italian, he enrolled in the Istituto Superiore per le Industrie Artistiche (ISIA).
Four years later, he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in industrial design. Lai said he found the experience a challenge, and felt very homesick at times. His design talent was spotted by Ford Germany, who offered him a full post-graduate scholarship to study transportation design at the Royal College of Art (RCA) in London. He remembered he was disappointed by the offer, as he felt he was ready to start work and earn a salary. “I was dejected because I wanted to start work,’’ he recalls. “I worked seven days a week at art school for the first three months, and things started to fall in place in the second year.”
