Belgian top designer Luc Donckerwolke says goodbye to Hyundai after a relatively short period. For private reasons, the Fleming quits; he reportedly wants to spend more time with his family. It is high time to draw up an interim balance sheet of the impressive portfolio of Donckerwolke.
Skoda Octavia Mk1
Luc Donckerwolke, now 54, joined the Volkswagen Group in his late twenties as a designer after a brief debut in the automotive design sector at Peugeot. Within Volkswagen, his first major achievement came to Skoda, when he got the design of the first modern Octavia on his plate. Donckerwolke provided a very own coach for the Czech car, which shared its base with, among others, the Volkswagen Golf IV. The clean, but relatively simple design fitted well with the no-nonsense image that Skoda had to convey, but at the same time heralded a markedly more modern and stronger era for the brand. With success, because the Octavia brought about a solid return of Skoda to the Western European market.
Audi A2
After the successful period with Skoda, in which he also signed the Fabia, Donckerwolke returned to Audi. There he had taken his first steps within the Volkswagen group earlier in the 90s. Donckerwolke was at the cradle of several Audis, for example also the A4 Avant (B6), but the A2 was the most special one. The compact MPV caused a lot of dust when it was unveiled. Donckerwolke managed to make a relatively boring body shape striking. The A2 was praised for its innovative design and Donckerwolke had even managed to apply style influences from the equally striking TT in a completely different car. The A2 was perhaps a bit too special for the potential buyers, because no overly sensational numbers were sold.
Lamborghini Murciélago
From a Skoda Octavia via an Audi A2 to a Lamborghini. Yes, Donckerwolke had an upward trend. At the end of the 90s, he was already at the head of the design department of the Italian brand acquired by Audi. It was there that he really realized a boy’s dream. After freshening up the Diablo for the last round (as VT), Donckerwolke got behind a blank sheet of paper for the Diablo successor. Under his leadership, the Murciélago was created and Lamborghini was launched at full speed into the 21st century. In a modern way, the Murciélago was almost as crazy as the Countach, especially thanks to the striking sliding air intakes on the C-pillars. Unmistakably a Lamborghini, but one of the new stamp.
Bentley Flying Spur
The exclusive stuff was Donckerwolke and after a trip to Seat, where he signed the Ibiza of 2008, the now late forties ended up at Bentley in 2012. The first generation of the Bentley Continental Flying Spur was not very popular with many with the somewhat clumsy combination of Continental elements and a huge carriage. It is up to Donckerwolke to balance the second generation (which was only called Flying Spur). Successfully. The Flying Spur still remained a remarkable appearance, but the second looked certainly more graceful and less clumsy than its predecessor.
Hyundai Kona
Finally, there is Doncker Cloud’s time at Hyundai. As with the previous brands, it was not an overly long period. The designer ended up with the South Koreans in early 2016 and is now gone, four years later. Still, they were productive years. He was responsible for the special Hyundai Palisade, the recently unveiled and just as special Prophecy Concept, but also the Genesis GV80, G80 and G90. All very striking designs. The most relevant design for us is the Hyundai Kona. With that, Hyundai turned a pretty alternative angle in terms of design vision. There is no arguing about taste, but again it is a very striking design. So by Donckerwolke, from whom we will probably hear more in the future.