Design & Emotion Blog

I am in the middle of preparing an interview with BMW’s worldwide head of design, Chris Bangle. Browsing through some websites I found that BMW has a magazine in Germany named “BMW Emotion”.

The magazine is published quarterly for the German market with half a million copies per time. It is described as “a topical, entertaining and informative customer medium with an expressive design to bind costumers even stronger. For 20 BMW offices in Germany.”

Is it obvious why BMW named this magazine “BMW Emotion”? One thing can be said; BMW is certainly an automotive brand that evokes clear and distinct reactions. Some hate the new designs by Bangle and perhaps just as many (or more) love them, which is shown by ever increasing revenues and sales. Not to mention the copying and acceptance of the highly criticized “Bangle Butt” (a derogatory term for the current rear-end styling paradigm among high-end automobiles – Wikipedia).

In my preperations for this interview I am particularly interested in what you (fellow designers, creative people and emotional design enthusiasts) think of BMW in terms of emotional branding/ design. Please, share your opinion, and perhaps I can ask mr. Bangle what was on your mind.