Ken Okuyama, creative director, Pininfarina S.p.A.

Ken Okuyama is the creative director at Pininfarina S.p.A., based in Turin, Italy where he is responsible for automotive and transportation design. Mr Okuyama is also a professor at the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California.

During his time at Pininfarina Ken designed the latest Ferrari Enzo, the Ferrari Rossa concept car, the Pininfarina Metrocubo concept car and the Peugeot Nautilus. He also supervised numerous other production projects for brands such as Ferrari, Maseratti, Alfa Romeo, Peugeot, Honda and Mitsubishi.

Prior to joining Pininfarina, Ken worked for General Motors for nearly a decade. The last position he held there was chief designer at Advanced Concepts Center in California. Mr Okuyama has also worked for Porsche AG in Germany, where he participated in the new generation of Porsche 911 program.

Ken continues to consult in various industrial design fields in his role as founder of the Newton Design Lab. His clients include well known automotive industrial companies and entertainment companies around the world. He is currently involved in designing humanoid robots and furniture.

From 1987 to 1989 Ken was teaching as a visiting professor at Tohoku University of Art and Science in Japan. He was also a part time faculty teacher at the Center for Creative Studies College of Art from 1987 to 1989 and in 1991 at the Art Center College of Design in Europe.

Ken graduated from the Art Center College of Design in California in [1986]. He also achieved a BFA from the Musashino Art University, Japan.

Ken was born in Japan and now lives in Italy. He speaks three languages fluently - Japanese, English and Italian.

Awards Received

• The Ferrari Rossa was the winner of The Best Concept Car of The Year award in 2000
• The Pininfarina Metrocubo was the winner of The Best Interior Design of the Year Award in 1999

Speeches / Presentations / Articles
Mr Okuyama has spoken at several design conferences in Europe, Japan and the USA. He writes articles for several magazines and newspapers.