The Amazing Story Of The American Who Drew In Italian
I think it’s unquestionable that the 1950s and 60s have been the “golden era” of Italian automobile design. But what if I told you that one of the world’s most accomplished Italian car designers was actually born and raised in Detroit, Michigan?
This is the amazing story of Tom Tjaarda: the American designer behind some of the most iconic Italian classics.
In the blood
Born in July 1934, we could say that Tom Tjaarda had car design in his blood, given his father John was behind the sweeping, teardrop shape of the 1936 Lincoln Zephyr. However, following his parents’ divorce in 1939, Tom was raised by his mother and studied architecture at the local university.
There, Tom met associate professor Aarre Lathi who, noticing Tom’s talent for design and passion for automobiles, recommended him to Luigi Segre, the boss of Turin’s Carrozzeria Ghia. Segre, at the time, received a lot of work from American companies, especially Chrysler, and legend has it that his American contacts dated from some covert work he did for the Allies during WWII.
