Continued...

McGovern says the 1940 Continental - a car that architect Frank Lloyd Wright declared to be the most beautiful car in the world - is significant for its sheer elegance. The Continental, which was commissioned by Edsel Ford and designed by E.T. Gregorie, was the first vehicle honored for design excellence by the Museum of Modern Art in New York.

The Mark II, designed and built under the direction of William Clay Ford Sr., was envisioned as the contemporary evolution of the original Continental. The Mark II established the classic hood, cabin and deck proportions of the modern luxury coupe and was an oasis of restraint in a market dominated by tail fins, chrome and exaggerated styling elements.

The 1961 Continental, which was designed by Elwood Engel, remains one of the most enduring automotive designs of all time. Its sheer body surfaces, unique center-opening doors, chrome-accented shoulder line and overall restraint established a signature look for Lincoln that was totally unique. Pablo Picasso owned a Continental from this era. 1960s-era Continentals still have tremendous visual impact and have been featured in several popular films, including "The Matrix."

"When a brand has such a strong design heritage as Lincoln, the challenge is to recognize the past without being held back by it," McGovern says. "Between the 1940s and the 1960s, Lincolns were about beautiful proportions, elegant sophistication and restraint. These are qualities we can realize in a modern context without being at all retrospective."


Lincoln Design DNA

While classic Lincolns illustrate the qualities of elegant sophistication and restraint, several examples of contemporary furniture and industrial design also are inspiring the Lincoln design team.

"In our exploration, we asked ourselves what creates luxury and what gives great designs their longevity. Then we looked at the qualities of various pieces of design to help communicate our idea of American Luxury," McGovern says.

First and foremost, Lincoln's new design philosophy is contemporary, he says. "Often, when people think of contemporary architecture or modern furniture design, they think of something cold and austere. We will deliver designs that are contemporary, but also warm, inviting, indulgent and highly functional."

Few products combine all of these elements, but one excellent example McGovern points to is the Wally B yacht, a 106-foot sloop designed by Italian naval architects Luca Brenta Associates and built by Wally Yachts of Monaco. Luca Brenta and Lazzarini & Pickering of Rome collaborated on the interior design.

"The Wally B yacht is a thoroughly modern sailing vessel built with leading-edge technology and weight-saving materials, but its interior is still indulgently comfortable," he says.

Continuity and consistency also are important elements for Lincoln. "There are luxury brands that essentially build small, medium and large versions of the same product. This will not be our approach," McGovern says. "Our vehicles will have a high level of differentiation while being bound together by a common design DNA."

Exposed engineering is another feature the Lincoln team finds desirable, as exemplified by the Meda office chair, designed by Alberto Meda.

"Much of the structure and mechanisms of the Meda chair are left exposed because they are beautiful. We are going to strive for the same level of execution in Lincoln vehicles," says McGovern. "A hinge or a seat bracket must serve a function, but there is no reason why they cannot be both functional and beautiful."

The dimensionally compact but high performance Bang & Olufsen BeoSound sound system, with its glass doors that gently slide open with a wave of the hand, also provided inspiration for the design team. "The most sophisticated premium products have great precision, tactility and logic in their controls," according to McGovern.

A common feature of each of these products is that the sensual feeling of luxury is derived from the intrinsic quality of the materials and construction. "Luxury is not something that can be applied - it must be intrinsic," McGovern says. "A car's surfaces, its jewelry and materials - whether they are metal, wood, leather, plastic or fabric - must be appropriate to their job, beautifully rendered and expertly crafted."

Lincoln Design, together with Lincoln Product Development and Manufacturing, will be based in Dearborn, Mich. Designers and engineering teams will also be based at Lincoln Mercury headquarters in Irvine, Calif.