Sid Ramnarace
Sid Ramnarace (born Sid Ramnaresh) is a Canadian-born designer of Guyanese descent,[1] and strategist who has worked with the Ford Motor Company, in Dearborn, Michigan, United States, and has designed automobiles, furniture, jewelry, textiles, glassware, and home decor.[2][3]
Background
Ramnarace was born in Canada to Guyanese parents. At the age of 12, he submitted letters to Chuck Jordan at General Motors and Jack Telnack at Ford in the hope of receiving advice to landing a job as a designer.[4] Based on the reply from those letters, Ramnarace studied at the Cleveland Institute of Art, where he graduated with a degree in industrial design, studying under the tutelage of design pioneer, Viktor Schreckengost.
Career
After a brief stint at General Motors as a contract designer, Ramnarace began at Ford working at Ford's Global Design Center and developed textiles, color and trim for the Ford Explorer, Ford Prodigy [5] and 24.7 show car concepts,[6] where he worked under VP of Design J Mays and Chief Designer Laurens van den Acker.
He has contributed to automobile interiors and exteriors including the Ford Edge and Lincoln MKX, Ford Flex, Ford Thunderbird [7] and most notably, the 5th generation Ford Mustang which was cited as one of the most iconic cars of the last 20 years.[8]
Sid has also spent time teaching at his alma mater as well as appearing as a guest speaker at the University of Michigan Ross School of Business at the MBA in Marketing program.[9]
Criticism
The clean design of the 24.7 featured simple geometric shapes and machined surfaces which were designed to communicate a technical look and feel, complimenting the prescient advanced communication and telematic technologies that made up the essence of 24.7. However, the design of the 24.7 was criticized in the press - The Car Connection was quoted saying, "It's wrapped around the Internet because the Internet is trendy, and in the design-led world Ford is entering under J Mays guidance, trendy is everything." [10]
Selected projects
-
Ford Thunderbird (11th Generation) -
![Ford Mustang (5th Generation)[11]](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6e/Ford_Mustang_GT_coupe_--_07-30-2009.jpg/100px-Ford_Mustang_GT_coupe_--_07-30-2009.jpg)
Ford Mustang (5th Generation)[11] -
Ford Edge -
Lincoln MKX -
Ford Explorer (3rd Generation) -
Ford Prodigy Concept
![Ford Mustang (5th Generation)[11]](/wiki/File:Ford_Mustang_GT_coupe_--_07-30-2009.jpg)
References
- ^ "International Home + Housewares Show 2013: Savora: Q+A, with Sid Ramnarace". Core77. Retrieved 15 May 2013.
- ^ "Ramnarace Gilles Cufflinks=Design Spotter". Retrieved 26 January 2009.
- ^ "1000 Product Designs: Form, Function and Technology from Around the World - Eric Chan".
- ^ "Ford renews design links with The Cleveland Institute of Art". Car Design News. Retrieved 2 May 2002.
- ^ "Prodigy Points Way To Ford's Future". EV World. Retrieved 16 March 2008.
- ^ "Ford 24-7 Design Review". Car Design News. Archived from the original on 27 January 2007. Retrieved 18 May 2007.
- ^ "John Phillips: Capturing the Allure of Ginger". Car and Driver. Retrieved 15 August 2014.
- ^ "25 Most Iconic Cars of the Past 20 Years". Businessweek. Retrieved 16 February 2010.
- ^ "Past Speakers". YaffeCenter. Archived from the original on 7 January 2009. Retrieved 15 May 2008.
- ^ "2000 Detroit Show: Ford's 24.7". The Car Connection. Retrieved 11 July 2013.
- ^ Lingeman, Jake (December 9, 2013). "Facts and Figures on America's First Pony Car". Autoweek: 29.
External links
- Core 77 Interview with Sid Ramnarace Q+A with Sid Ramnarace at the International Home and Housewares Show
- Car and Driver Car and Driver feature on Ramnarace designs