I worked with Allan Flowers in Buick in the late ’70s until he left for Nissan Design International. Very talented and super creative designer. This collection of artwork is from his GM days with a couple of sketches from NDI. Allan is currently very involved in RC aircraft and is currently building an incredible Siemens Schuckert D.III in 1/6th scale that he designed using Alias.
Allan’s career goes like this: BS degree in Product Design/Industrial Design 1964, The Institute of Design of Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago. 1964-1980 GM Design Staff, Assistant Chief Designer, Buick Studio. 1980-2006 Nissan Design America, Chief Designer, manager Product Design, manager Nissan Design Lab at the Academy of Art University, San Francisco. Lead designer on Nissan Pulsar NX, NX Coupe, Altima sedan (first iteration). 2006-present, retired.
Allan was a great guy to work with. He and I worked together in a little studio called Advanced 2 at GM Design Staff in the mid ’60s. In addition to his creative talents as a designer, Alan had an inventive streak with a strong leaning toward humor. He and another designer, Joe Ferraioli, once had an ornithopter flying contest in the studio. Joe was a big, slow moving guy who occasionally bumped into desks and things, while Al was smaller and much more nervous in those days. Each created their own rubber band powered ornithopter, a type of aircraft that flies solely by flapping its wings. Both designers launched their creations at one end of the studio, the object being simply to reach the far end while still aloft. Joe’s made uncertain headway with slow convulsive spasms of its big floppy wings, while Alan’s smaller contraption thrashed wildly like a berserk butterfly. Amazingly, both machines made it through the air to the other end of the studio, but I was laughing so hard I can’t recall whose got there first.
Allen made such beautiful convincing sketches. I never had the opportunity to work with him but his sketch technique was one that we all admired and tried from time to time to emulate. The aesthetic content was only surpassed by his inventiveness that was expressed both graphically and with form language. That is what made his work so special. In a building full of talent it was very hard to stand out, but he did.
Dick Ruzzin