Answer:
Cheers Tim. Mazda's new design theme Kodo means 'Soul of Motion’.
Since the launch of the Zoom-Zoom brand message, Mazda has pursued the concept of more athletic and sporty motion, and has adopted dynamic designs for all Mazda models.
In recent years, this motion-based design has been further extended to incorporate the theme of ‘motion inspired by nature’, embodied in the Mazda NAGARE concept car series
As a result of these initiatives, since the launch of the first Mazda6 in 2002, Mazda design has been the subject of great acclaim, receiving 30 global awards for car design alone. This is something we are very proud of.
Ikuo Maeda is the General Manager of Mazda’s Design Division, and explains the new design theme in this way: “In our work to further evolve the expression of motion, Mazda Design has focused on the strength, beauty and tension found in the instantaneous movement seen in animals. This motion is so full of vitality that it stirs the emotions of those who see it. We have named it ‘KODO – Soul of Motion’, and our aim is to express movement with forceful vitality and speed as the design theme for Mazda’s upcoming models.”
Maeda continues, “Mazda’s four design studios located in Japan (Hiroshima and Yokohama), Europe (Frankfurt, Germany), and North America (Irvine, California) are currently combining to take up the challenge to achieve a breakthrough in the expression of motion in car design, and incorporate this expression into our future products.”
Ikuo Maeda was born on July 16, 1959. He graduated in Industrial Design from the Kyoto Technical and Textile University, Faculty of Technology.
Maeda-san joined Mazda in April 1982. He was in charge of advanced design at Mazda’s Yokohama Design Studio from 1985-1986. Following a three-year work assignment at Mazda North America Operations’ design studio in the late 1980s, he held a succession of prominent design positions before being dispatched to Ford’s Design Studio in Detroit (1999-2000).
Upon his return to Mazda in Hiroshima in 2000 as Chief Designer, he led the team which designed the highly acclaimed Mazda RX-8 sports car. More recently, Maeda was the Chief Designer for the second-generation Mazda2, which in 2008 was crowned World Car of the Year, among many other motoring accolades.
“Maeda-san has played a pivotal role in the success that Mazda Design has experienced globally,” says Seita Kanai, Mazda’s Senior Executive Officer of Research and Design. “His local and global experience make him well-qualified to take Mazda Design to the next stage.”
Now we wait to see where our designers and Maeda-san take us next. First the Shinari, then...