Earl Lucas grew up in Dallas, attending the noted Arts Magnet High School that also launched recording artists Erykah Badu and Norah Jones. Lucas then moved to Detroit were he attended the College for Creative Studies (CCS), with a focus on transportation design. (Photo by HB Meeks/Tell Us Detroit)

PROFILE: EARL LUCAS, DESIGN MANAGER FOR 2010 FORD TAURUS

INSPIRED BY MUSIC, ELECTRONICS, THE URBAN CAR CULTURE

By Karen H. Samuels/Tell Us Detroit

Earl Lucas, Ford Motor Company’s 2010 Ford Taurus Exterior Design Manager is winning praise and recognition as the trailblazer behind the revamped look of the Taurus known as company’s flagship full-size sedan.

Lucas the man, is a regular, easy going, team player who has taken his new-found fame in stride thanks to a family that offers perspective which keeps him grounded. He laughs when asked about family reaction to his accolades for the Taurus design. “My wife and daughter know the real me so they make sure my head doesn’t get too big”. Parental pride is another thing “My parents have been incredibly happy”.

So how does a Dallas raised young man join, who just happens to be African American, rise to the top ranks of automotive design and still greet strangers with a winning smile and everyman sensibility? Tell Us Detroit sat down with Earl Lucas at Ford’s Product Development Center to learn more about the man behind the design.

Being Named Lead Taurus Designer
Lucas said the news of being named designer came with mixed emotions “I was really excited, that I would be working on a historic nameplate like Taurus, but it came with great responsibility and a little pressure, but we were up to the challenge.” Lucas is quick to credit teamwork for the two and half years (an accelerated pace for the industry) it took to take Taurus from design to production. “The Taurus benefited from a team that was joined at the hip trying to make something new for the company and I was fortunate to with it pretty much all the way” to launch.

The team conducted extensive research to understand the significance of the Taurus and what made the car a hit. From the beginning, Lucas says the team knew it wanted the car that was a bit more “aspirational”.



And what is aspirational? “It’s pretty simple; you just want people to notice you when you’re driving this car.” The team used very expressive lines to capture the eye, “We wanted the surface lines to have a lot of tension framed by all the line work that goes from front to rear.” Lucas added, “Who said a Taurus could not be sexy, that it couldn’t be sporty that’s what we wanted to do.”

Family Background
For Lucas interest in design came early, influenced by a supporting family and a Mother who was and still is an interior designer. “At a very early age I knew I wanted to do something creative, I’ve always been a tinker, I was always the kid who loved to sketch and draw”.

Growing up in a Dallas neighborhood that didn’t have many designers had it challenges, but Lucas says his Father who owned a construction company always fulfilled his requests for art suppliers and ultimately an art education. “He makes the roadways, his son makes the cars that go on the roadways” Lucas explains, adding “I tell my parents all the time that I never wanted to anything that would embarrass them”.

Studying Design
Lucas says he was fortunate to attend a high school dedicated to the arts. Trained as a visual artist at Arts Magnet, Lucas gained the attention of the Center of Creative Studies (CCS) in Detroit who, and during a recruitment trip to Arts Magnet, offered Lucas a scholarship -- and a move to Detroit.

“Believe it or not I went into jewelry design”. Lucas says the experience really helped him work with metal; early preparation for exterior car design. Lucas eventually made the transition into automotive design at CCS, but it would still be another three years before he landed at Ford Motor Company.

After graduating from CCS it was back to Texas, this time Austin where Lucas’s design career literally went airborne when he designed airplane interiors for the Sultan of Brunei. “It was a cool gig, because it really encompassed many of things I like doing, like jewelry because we did a lot of silverware, goblets, plates -- it allowed to me to concentrate on the details; whenever a designer can work on details, it can be used in a myriad of products.”

The Creative Process - Getting the Team Pumped
“Creative people are always trying to find that right spot where they can get these ideas out so the ideas can flow according to Lucas who says ”Music was a very integral part of designing the Taurus simply because it got to that right zone”.

The team exchanged music lists, and a personal favorite for Lucas was Anthony Hamilton. “He sings about social change the connection between his music and where we were trying to take Taurus really correlated with one another.” Music Lucas says was “Just the stimulus to help us get us past some of the roadblocks we had in coming up with the shapes we came up with.”
Alicia Keys and KEM a local Detroit vocalist were also Lucas inspirations.

Presenting the Taurus Design to Executives
“A very, very happy day, a very, very good day for me” is how Lucas describes the date executive management including Mark Fields, Ford’s President of the Americas, and Jay Mays Vice President of Design, came to the Product Development Center to see the 2010 Taurus design. “We brought them into a dark room and showed them this presentation played this music and then went directly into revealing the car, it was amazing and they agreed with it, after much iterations.”

Lucas says you had to be there, walked thru the highpoints: A classic music track by pianist Alicia Keys plays as words appear under a screen describing the rebirth of Taurus -- ASPIRATIONAL...then as the words transition to more edgy terms, the music transitions to a more hip hop, more urban beat with the piano still playing. “Metaphorically speaking we are changing what the Taurus has been about we are making it more progressive more hip.” Says Lucas.

Final Thoughts
What’s next for the Ford Taurus Lead Designer, he isn’t saying but promises some pretty cool, expressive lines, He says” Stay tuned! And what does Lucas drive, a Mustang, the breakthrough 2010 Taurus is driven by his wife.
 

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