When you think of the automotive industry, what type of career paths come to mind? Dealership salesperson, engineer, plant worker, maybe even marketer. But, what about the role of artist? It likely isn’t the first thing that comes to mind. However, the automotive industry is a great place for artists to spread their creative wings.
Just ask one of our design team members.
“Our team comprises a wide range of creative talent, like painters, sculptors, costume and fashion designers; all artists who can express their talents and have a fulfilling career,” said Stellantis Design Manager, Jeremy Glover. “There are many avenues to explore within automotive design and it continues to grow.”
While their talents and skillsets may vary, their mission is the same, to foster creativity within each other and the students they meet. When asked what’s the best part of being an automotive designer, the response is usually simple, doing what you love every single day.
The ability to start with a sketch and end with a beautifully crafted and functional vehicle that customers enjoy driving is a proud and even humbling experience. Just the same as a fashion designer seeing their clothing hit the runway, or a painter selling their first pieces at an art exhibit. The end results are different, but the passion remains the same.
Our designers strive to educate as many students as they can, as early as they can, about art-based careers, hoping to dispel the misconception that art degrees lead to a “starving artist’s” lifestyle. Truth be told, the automotive design world can be quite lucrative.
This is another reason the Stellantis North America product design office prioritizes outreach as one of their core values, as there are many talented young artists that haven’t yet been introduced to the creative career paths that are available to them.
Our design team meets with kids from elementary school through high school, in-person and virtually. Most recently, they visited West Middle School in Rochester Hills, Michigan, to speak with students in 8th grade. They gave a high-level overview of their jobs, sketched alongside students and chatted about what they do each day at work, all the while hoping to inspire students about creative and artistic careers.
Along with school visits, another way the Stellantis design team reaches the student community is through their annual design competition, Drive for Design.
Each year, students in grades 10-12 are tasked with sketching a vehicle with a specific theme. The top three sketches are selected, and the winning students receive prizes that help set them up for pursuing art and design at the next level. This year’s theme was to sketch an electric pickup truck for the Ram brand. The top winner received an internship in the Ram Truck design studio and will be working alongside some of the most talented automotive designers in the industry and garnering amazing experience that will set them up for success.
Our Goal
As technology advances, the demand for creative minds will continue to grow. We believe that cultivating creativity is one of the most important things that we can do to ensure a future full of successful, fearless thinkers.
The mission is to promote art and design for kids and young adults, while introducing them to the idea that imagination truly can become a career at Stellantis.
“We want to inspire students who are artistically inclined to follow their passion and perhaps pique their curiosity enough to research careers in creative fields. That in and of itself would be big a win for us,” said Carly Edgemon, design student relations coordinator at Stellantis. “In the long run, we would love to see more students attending art colleges and seeking out these types of careers, as they can be lucrative.”
Get Involved
Artists in the automotive industry are far from starving, and they play a key role in everything we do at Stellantis. Do you have a creative kiddo on your hands? Get Involved! If your school is interested in a visit, either in-person or virtual, let us know by sending a note to DriveforDesign@Stellantis.com.
