Creating Comfortable Indoor Space for Young People —— Dialogue with Cheng Kaida, V Interior Designer Yun Lai

Easy car original Dongfeng Nissan Qichen brand new compact SUV Qichen big V has been on the market for two months. This time, the Qichen V can make people feel very young from naming to vehicle design, and there is indeed a very young team behind it. In Dongfeng Nissan Qichen, they are called "V creators". Recently, I had the honor to chat with Yun Lai, the interior stylist of Cheng Kaida V. Today, I will share with you the story of this post-90 s designer and Cheng Kaida V.

Because of the epidemic, this conversation can only be conducted remotely online. Although it's a pity that I can't chat face to face, this conversation has made me know more about Cheng Kaida V and Yunlai himself. Whether you are interested in Qichen V or curious about the position of vehicle interior stylist, I believe you can get some answers in this conversation.

How did Teacher Lai embark on the road of automobile design? Is this the original goal?

I am engaged in automobile design. In fact, on the one hand, because my good friend likes cars, he often talks about cars with me, and my hand-drawing ability is not bad, so I did it. Another reason is that when I was a freshman, my teacher said that the most difficult thing in our industrial design was car design, so I set myself a goal in my mind, and I wanted to challenge myself if I wanted to do it.

What are the main jobs of automobile interior designers?

In fact, the interior design is similar to the exterior design. At first, we drew the effect diagram with hand-drawn board and PS from sketches, concepts and our own ideas, and then chose the scheme, three out of six, and one out of the last three. In addition to drawing, our work also cooperates with engineers such as digital modelers and sludge engineers to make 3D models and sludge models. After that, we will constantly switch and adjust between 2D drawing, 3D model and sludge model. In fact, light design is not difficult. What is difficult is the balance with engineers and the ultimate realizability of the scheme.

The design sketch of Qichen Block V just mentioned the selection scheme, so will there be a clear theme at the beginning of the design? Is there much room for designers to play?

At the beginning, our business planning department will make its own design according to the demand according to the user research, the long-term planning of the enterprise and the definition of the vehicle type, but the ideas given by the business planning department are more market-oriented or user demand, and the specific shape will be played by our designers. Of course, we must also combine the continuity of the brand. Generally speaking, designers still have a lot of room to play.

Qichen big V interior design sketch Qichen big V focuses on "youth", so what is your definition of youth?

I think what young people say is actually not only young, but also young in mind. Compared with older people, young people will be more active and open-minded, easier to accept and experience new things, and more courageous and unrestricted.

In design, will you be aesthetic or pragmatic?

I think there are many differences between design and art. Art can be very unconstrained, but design is more rational and needs more consideration for users, so I will focus on practicality.

Bauhaus's theory that "art and technology should be harmonious and unified" is very good, because technology is also to achieve functions, and our current users may prefer to "experience", which is actually a function. Nowadays, many car companies have a "thin" design direction in interior design, which brings users a sense of space and will not be particularly depressed when sitting inside, which is considered to be "thin" for users.

The sketch of the interior design of Cheng Kaida V is on Cheng Kaida V, which design best reflects the "experience" just mentioned?

I think it's a panoramic roof in the car 1.7 1 square meter. This is an "experience" design that will make the car more open. Imagine that when we lie on the Nissan sofa and look up at the sky through the panoramic canopy, we can not only see the meteor and Chang 'e (laugh), but also see how romantic and reassuring it is that the majestic rain can't fall on you!

Qichen V panoramic canopy is really strong, so what are the design details that you are most satisfied with?

The details ... I think it's the design of the connection between the central control and the door panel. We have made a sense of space extension and lightness, which is the kind of open and comfortable visual feeling we want to convey to users.

There is also the design of the air outlet. If you look at the real car, you can see an arc-shaped soft bag in front of the air outlet. We hope that the wind from the air outlet will not be like the mechanical wind from the electric fan, so let the wind blow through the hidden air outlet and the soft bag in front, which is more like the comfortable feeling of a mountain stream flowing through pebbles.

Personally, I prefer the design of hidden atmosphere lights. Is there anything to share in this part of the design?

In this part, I made a lot of plans for the director to choose when designing. At that time, we tried some ambience lights with brand language and some similar parametric ambience lights. But in the end, we chose such a more concise presentation, but this simplicity is actually more difficult to do. We want to combine the lamp with chrome-plated metal to make a hidden design, which is an evolution and innovation based on the common practices of traditional cars, reflecting a sense of mystery and technology.

Have you tried many times the design that you finally gave up on Qichen V?

In fact, every detail design has a lot of planning. If you must think of one, it may be the leather soft bag of the door panel. We designers all hope that the soft bags of door panels can be packed more and more, and they all hope that they are comfortable materials that can be touched, but in the end, due to the cost, the area of soft bags is still limited.

What was the overall idea of this car in your field at the beginning of the car?

It's a car with personality and a car for young people. Nowadays, the post-90s generation is under great social pressure, especially after working in big cities. Because everyone said that houses and cars, especially house prices, have reached the highest point, and the pressure on young people is really great. I heard that some people will listen to music in the car when they come home from work, and then go upstairs to go home, so as an indoor stylist, I also hope to bring a more comfortable and decompression indoor space to young people.

As a car interior designer, can you share your favorite design?

In fact, I like many excellent designs at home and abroad. Let me talk about my favorite brand. Personally, I think Mercedes-Benz is a brand with good interior appearance, which belongs to a brand with excellent interior and appearance. This will also have some influence on my design, such as simplicity, comfort and visual fluency.

Besides cars, what brands or designs do you like very much?

In fact, I pay attention to many industries and see many things every day, including architecture, home and clothing. I don't have a stubborn brand. I choose things with a very open mind, and I will not stubbornly choose only one brand, because each brand has its own unique design, so I will experience and feel more.

Editor's summary:

In fact, from short message communication to telephone conversation, I also talked with Mr. Lai about his family life and learned that he is from Jiangxi and lives and works in Guangzhou. He usually likes reading and sports. I used my graduation experience in architectural design to distance myself from Teacher Lai, and the whole chat was very relaxed and pleasant. During the whole chat, I can also feel Mr. Lai's love for big V and design work.

There are many young people like him in Qichen's car-making team. We can already feel this young power on Qichen V, and this power continues. They make cars for themselves and their peers. Maybe this is "ZAO of youth".