Paolo Martin

Paolo Martin (born 1943) is an Italian car designer widely known for his career with Studio Tecnico Michelotti, Carrozzeria Bertone, Pininfarina and De Tomaso/Ghia where he styled the Ferrari Dino Berlinetta Competizione, Ferrari Modulo concept, Fiat 130 Coupé and the Rolls-Royce Camargue.

Background and career

Born in Turin, Italy in 1943, Martin began working in 1960 for Giovanni Michelotti's Studio Tecnico Michelotti. He participated in the Auto 2011 Design Conference, in Zagreb, Croatia.

Design work Martin's work has received varied reception. In 2005, the Daily Telegraph called the Fiat 130 Coupé a "majestic blend of severity and grace, boldness and subtlety, sharp angles joined by soft curves, a true catwalk beauty, a masterclass that was widely copied in the Seventies but never equaled."

After its debut at the 1970 Geneva Motor Show, the Ferrari Modulo went on to be shown (repainted white, from its original black) at the 1970 Turin Motor Show and at Osaka's Expo '70, before winning 22 international design awards. A 2007 retrospective said the Modulo was "a milestone in the automobile design history with a deep influence on the 1970′s car styling." The Modulo placed third in Jalopnik's 2008 competition for the top ten best "Wedge Car Designs Of The 60s, 70s and 80s." ranked 38 in the 2005 book Crap Cars by Richard Porter (the author saying the car "looked utterly terrible)" and ranked 92 in a 2008 poll of the 100 ugliest cars of all time by readers of The Daily Telegraph. Autoblog said the Camargue had been ranked "conspicuously low on the list," adding the Camargue "really was horrid, no matter how well it sold." Responding to the Telegraph list, noted automotive journalist James May said the Camargue "is not ugly, either. It has presence, like that pug-faced but well-dressed bloke down the pub."

Series production designs Martin's design work that has seen series production includes: Triumph Spitfire (with Giovanni Michelotti) Fiat 130 Coupé Rolls-Royce Camargue Peugeot 104 Lancia Beta Montecarlo Stutz IV-Porte and Royale

Concept designs His concept design work has included: Dino Berlinetta Competizione (1967) BMC 1800 Aerodinamica (1967) Fiat Dino Parigi (1967) BLMC 1100 Aerodinamica (1968) Bentley T1 Pininfarina Coupé Speciale (1968) Alfa Romeo P33 Roadster (1968, later rebodied), Fiat Dino Ginevra (1968) Fiat 128 Teenager (1969) Ferrari Sigma (1969) Ferrari Modulo NSU Ro 80 "2 porte +2" (1971) Ford Fiesta Blue Car (1972, Ghia) Fiat Gobi (1984, Maggiora) Lotus Eminence (1980) Fiat Halley (1985, Maggiora) Nissan Hurricane Li-Ion (1986) Fiat Freely Savio (1987, Carrozzeria Savio) Fiat Topolino Concept (2008, for Ruoteclassiche Italian magazine) Citroen 2CV Concept (2008).