The 18th Challenge: Concours D’Elegance 2050.
Designer:
Dong Hun Han
Seoul, South Korea
Biography:
Dong Hun Han is a 24-year-old Korean university student currently majoring in automotive design at Korea National University of Arts.
Ever since when he was a newborn, there was not a single day which he didn’t think about automobiles. He would learn numbers and letters through license plates and rear emblems of vehicles. And while others would play with teddy bears and robots, he would only play with diecast cars, which gave him an inspiration for his future dream job – automotive designer.
His first award related to design came in 2013, when he was one of the finalists in the Korea Futuristic Car Design Competition held bi-annually by the Korea Institute of Design Promotion. In 2017, with fellow students and seniors in his school, he undertook a 1-year collaboration design project sponsored by Hyundai trucking division. This marked his first official work experience in the field.
Not only is Dong Hun interested in vehicle design and styling but is also highly passionate in what goes around in the automotive world in general. His biggest daily habit is to carefully listen to automotive news report shows and documentaries as well as reviews, which also developed another personal hobby of learning several new things in automotive world day-by-day.
His mission in life is to preserve the ‘fun, satisfying, and pleasurable’ aspect of vehicles to the user via design as the car industry changes. With autonomous, car-subscription, and ride sharing services further come to place in our society, he believes a harmonious, yet intriguing design will play a critical role with the users and their interaction towards the vehicles.
At present, he is actively seeking a vehicle design internship or any part-time freelance design work opportunities.
Description:
How will your 2025 vehicle become a classic and thus win Best in Show in the Michelin Concours d”Elegance 2050?
“The return of the ‘wedge’ shape in futuristic fashion mesmerizes future auto enthusiasts at the Concourse 2050”
The late 1960s were a groundbreaking time for Italian automakers, but none other than Ferrari with their 512S speciale concept car, a highly futuristic low-profile supercar that represented the futurism art movement of Italy and the future that was soon coming up ahead. Not long after, other manufacturers entered the bandwagon of this new design theme, with Bertone showing its Lancia Stratos Zero a year later and Italdesign with the Maserati Boomerang concept.
2025 marks the upcoming 75th anniversary the legendary Italian automaker (Ferrari) and it’s highly intimate relationship with the Carrozeria design firm. And to celebrate this, the company decides to bring back a futuristic interpretation of the ‘wedge’ design theme. They unveil the “Gothica Rossa” supercar concept, a bold, dynamic, and radical concept car that looks straight out of a sci-fi film while displaying the dynamic theme of the wedge-shape design language. And 25 years later, in the year 2050, the vehicle’s jaw dropping beauty and engineering brings a huge sensation when it is presented at the Concourse’D Elegance, thus claiming the prestigious ‘Best in Show’ award.
What makes your vehicle distinct and collectible?
Apart from its wedge shape design, the main inspiration for the design of this vehicle, which is Gothic Architecture, introduces the structure and design of future supercars. This highly distinctive characteristic particularly sets the Gothica Rossa concept from other supercars.
Ferraris are also known for their successful racing heritage and the Gothica Rossa concept pays tribute to the iconic numerous mid-engine cars of the past, from the 512BBi Boxer, the Testarossa, and the limited exclusive models, from the timeless 288 GTO to the LaFerrari, thus making it highly collectible.
What makes it a classic?
“An architect’s passionate structural romance with his beautiful machine”
The Gothica Rossa has a dramatic romance story which led to its creation, by a highly passionate architect. Being a one-off vehicle to showcase not only the beauty and the structural elegance of future supercars, the ‘love-story’ of man-and-machine reflect” s people’s desire of cars as not just ‘happiness’ and ‘satisfaction’, but ‘love, which contains all these elements which would ultimately lead it to become a legendary classic.
Alan Couture is a highly renowned French architect. His ancestry traces back to the roots of Medieval times where his ancestors were responsible in creation of these majestic architectures across Europe. He has found great success through his design/planning firm, and through this, he is able to indulge in his hobby of collecting beautiful and most often, highly unusual items. Many of his collections comprise of exclusive cars, from one off concept cars of the past, to modern day supercars.
He is deeply mesmerized by the car’s low-end silhouette and decides that he wants a modern interpretation of his own. He contacts the head of Pininfarina, to create a one off hypercar on Ferrari’s future full-EV platform combining the wedge theme with modern looks. Couture, having experiences of vehicle construction in his past, also assists the development of his personal car, by presenting his new method of supercar construction that was inspired from Gothic Architecture.
He wanted the car to be nothing the world has ever seen before and take the design to the most extreme of all and implement the latest technology the world could offer.
Being a one-off vehicle to showcase not only the beauty and the structural elegance of future supercars, the ‘love-story’ of man-and-machine forms an emotional bond between the car and the people of the event, making it an absolute classic in the automotive world.
Why did you choose your brand, either an established brand or one currently unknown?
Gothic architecture is not only structurally beautiful but also beautiful in appearance. Ferrari is the most suitable car for this theme. It is a high-performance supercar brand that emphasizes not only weight, performance, heritage, but also beauty.
Gothic architecture and Ferrari are similar. The former is regarded as an invaluable work and is listed in UNESCO as a World Heritage Site, the latter claiming the title as ‘the most expensive car in the world (1962 250 GTO)’ at auctions each year, as well as claiming victory in numerous motorsports, and of course, being called “the most beautiful car in the world”. The only difference is that the former is a building and the latter is a car.
Is it either among the first to feature innovative elements and characteristics, or perhaps the last to utilize certain technologies?
This vehicle concept utilizes a groundbreaking whole new vehicle frame / chassis architecture where tubular frames encompass the entire main body of the vehicle. An improvement of the space frame we currently have today, this structure, inspired by the process of Gothic architecture, provides further structural rigidity while making the vehicle light as possible.
Thanks to the Gothic style of architecture, there are buildings of height, size and formality that we have never seen before. In addition, this architectural style has an excellent durability that does not disintegrate even after more than 700 to 800 years have passed. Thus, I applied the Gothic style that brought innovation in the architecture itself and tried a breakthrough design to the vehicle.
Recalling the advantages of Gothic architecture, I studied the key elements of Gothic architecture and the order in which the buildings were built. Pointed Arch, Ribbed Vault, and Flying Buttress are three of Gothic architectural features that shape the Ferrari’s design.
A fascia inspired by the pointed arch and overlapped with ‘X’ shape theme was undertaken. In addition, the ribbed vault is a high structure that overlaps a cylindrical structure, and it has secured a lot of space for the vehicle. And last, but not least, the largest element of Gothic architecture, the flying buttress, is completely separated from the wall to support the pressure of the outer wall. The flying buttress, which is often found in exotic mid-engine cars, is also notably present in the Gothica Rossa concept. By evolving this feature one step further, I have designed the flying buttress to continue smoothly from the front cowl to the fender without interruption. This design not only emphasizes the identity of the vehicle but is both air-resistant and structurally safe.
The frame of the vehicle is divided into three parts and assembled together. Frames are similar to today’s spaceframes, but they are more advanced and support the entirety of the vehicle.
Does it stand as the pinnacle of 140 years of vehicle design or signal a complete break with the past?
To many, the wedge design language paved way for not only distinctive and iconic themes in vehicles (mid-engine layout), but also displayed numerous features that were highly innovative (ex. scissor doors).
It was the beginning of this era which brought in numerous future collectibles that are timeless today, such as the Lancia Stratos and the Lamborghini Countach, which many consider, the true beginning of an ‘outrageous supercar’. The Countach was nothing the world had ever seen before, and the fact that it was for production was what really made the wedge design era such an important timeline in the history of the automobile.
The Gothica Rossa Concept highlights a very important transition period of the wedge theme and the significant role it played in the pinnacle of 140 years of vehicle design.
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