Ermanno Cressoni

Ermanno Cressoni (d. 30 June 2005) was an Italian car designer who worked for both Alfa Romeo and Fiat during his career. He designed or directed the design of a number of significant cars such as the Alfa Romeo 75 and the Fiat Coupe. He was often referrered to as 'Arch'. He died in Milan, Italy in June 2005 after battling cancer for over a year.

Career

Cressoni was director of Alfa Romeo Centro Stile where he designed and oversaw a wide range of cars including the Alfa Romeo Alfetta saloon (1972), and from the late 1970s his 'La Linea' sharp edged designs featured in the Giulietta (1977), Alfa 33 (1983) and Alfa 75 (1985). In 1985, Cressoni patented a design for a centre console that featured extra storage space as a result of a U-shaped hand brake and was awarded a US patent (number 4,818,008) in 1989.

After Fiat acquired Alfa Romeo in 1986, he became director of Fiat Centro Stile where he directed the team that produced Fiat Cinquecento (1991), Fiat Coupe (1993), Alfa Romeo 145 (1994), Fiat Barchetta (1995) and Fiat Bravo (1995). Many of his staff from Alfa Romeo and Fiat Centro Stile became influential designers in their own right including Chris Bangle, Walter de'Silva and Andreas Zapatinas.