An ambition for simplicity
Design is not just about shapes, lines or decoration. It is also about instilling soul into a brand and making customers passionate about a product. The ultimate goal of Kia's styling activities is to create complete, pure and unprecedented designs that define the brand. Kia will seek deeper global interaction to gain an extensive understanding of different markets and technologies as we strive to make the brand more exciting and fun.
The simplicity of a straight line is one of the fundamental concepts that underpin Kia's design philosophy. Straight lines represent clarity, precision and distinctiveness, and these traits are fully reflected in the attitudes and visions of Kia designers. Our design efforts focus on attaining long-term loyalty from customers via simple shapes, delicate interior and exterior details and providing experiences that are hard to find in other cars.
Kia’s European Design Centre
Located in Frankfurt, Germany, Kia’s Europe Design Centre helps change perceptions of the brand all over the world. Its dedicated team of designers create concept cars of the future as well as production models for both the European and global markets.
The American, Japanese and European Design Centres support Kia's main design hub in Namyang, Korea, which undertakes all aspects of car design from planning and conceptualisation to styling, modelling and colour and material development. This geographical diversity allows Kia’s design teams to analyse global trends and explore the distinct lifestyles in different markets around the world.
Opposites United: a design philosophy for all future Kia vehicles
The Opposites United design philosophy made its European debut on EV6 at the start of 2021 and will feature on all future Kia models.
The philosophy is based on five key design pillars: ‘Bold for Nature’, ‘Joy for Reason’, ‘Power to Progress’, ‘Technology for Life’, and ‘Tension for Serenity’.
1) Bold for Nature is based on our interactions with nature, informed by the details, shapes and proportions found in the natural and human worlds. This design pillar creates organic, yet technical, structures and finishes for vehicle interiors, while the exterior designs are characterised by a combination of clear and simple lines with bold, ever-changing surfaces.
2) Joy for Reason focuses on the feel and ambience of Kia’s future vehicles. Future designs will fuse the emotional with the rational, creating vehicles that affect a passengers' mood by relaxing and inspiring them. It will also influence the adoption of new organic materials and more daring colours, expressing a sense of youth and playfulness.
3) Power to Progress builds on the brand’s current design strengths. By drawing on and developing the skills and expertise learned throughout Kia’s recent era of design-led transformation, the designs and layouts of the brand’s future products will continue to evolve. Future designs will draw on experience and creativity to invent and innovate new designs.
4) Technology for Life embraces new technologies and innovations to generate positive interactions between humans and machines. The brand’s future vehicles will adopt a next-generation in-car user experience (UX) through design and innovation and advancements in lighting, feel and in-car connectivity to help customers engage with their cars.
5) Tension for Serenity evokes the tension between opposing forces and creative contrasts and recognises the design equilibrium that comes from two opposing forces. It delivers striking design concepts that use sharp, highly technical details to create surface tension – and realise a harmonised, future-oriented design vision.
