Detroit Auto Show: Here are the 2025 EyesOn Design winners

Posted by Talbot Payne on January 11, 2025

Detroit — Once an uninspired box on top of a ladder frame chassis, automotive design blossomed after World War II, and today cars are rolling art sculptures.

Each year, EyesOn Design Awards convenes top global designers and design educators in the field to recognize the most significant production and concept vehicles that debuted over the past year — August 2023-August 2024, in this case. Considered one of the industry’s highest honors, the prizes are valued by designers worldwide as recognition by their peers for standout creations.

The Cadillac Opulent Velocity, the winner of the EyesOn Design Award for Best Concept Vehicle, on display Friday, Jan. 10, 2025, at the Detroit Auto Show in Huntington Place.

The Cadillac Opulent Velocity, the winner of the EyesOn Design Award for Best Concept Vehicle, on display Friday, Jan. 10, 2025, at the Detroit Auto Show in Huntington Place. Clarence Tabb Jr., The Detroit News

To kick off the Detroit Auto Show in Huntington Place, the winners were announced Friday in four categories:

EyesOn Design Award for Best Concept Vehicle: Cadillac Opulent Velocity

EyesOn Design Award for Best Production Vehicle: Karma Kaveya

EyesOn Design Award for Innovative Use of Color, Graphics or Material: Cadillac Sollei

EyesOn Design Award for Best Designed Interior: BMW Vision Neue Klasse X

Judges for the 18th EyesOn Design Awards are a who’s who list of top designers. They include: Ian Callum, director of design, Callum; Wayne Cherry, General Motors Co. vice president for design (retired); Kemal Curić, Ford global executive design director; Tom Gale, Chrysler executive vice president (retired); Professor Dale Harrow, chair and director of the IMDC Royal College of Art; Dave Marek, Honda R&D executive adviser, R&D; Tom Matano, executive director, School of Industrial Design at the Academy of Art University; Victor Nacif, chair of design, NewSchool of Architecture and Design; Camillo Pardo, 2005 Ford GT designer, painter and designer, Art and Development Inc.; Steve Pasteiner, president, advanced automotive technologies; Charles (“Chuck”) Pelly, chief creative officer, Intersection Inc.; Joel Piaskowski, global design director, Ford Motor Co.; Michael Simcoe, GM senior vice president, global design; Paul Snyder, chair of transportation design, College for Creative Studies; Jack Telnack, Ford vice president, design (retired); Mark Trostle Sr., Roush chief designer, creative services; Mark Trostle Jr., Stellantis NV vice president, Ram and Mopar Design; Todd Willing, Ford head of design.

In addition to its automobile honorees, EyesOn Design also selected longtime Jaguar designer Ian Callum to receive the 2025 EyesOn Design Lifetime Design Achievement Award.

The annual award is determined by previous winners including names like Chris Bangle, Peter Brock, Wayne Cherry, Tom Gale, Ralph Gilles, Robert Lutz, Gordon Murray, Shiro Nakamura, Sergio Pininfarina, Peter Schreyer, Ed Welburn and others.

Callum will receive his bauble June 13 at Ford House, the historic lakefront home of Eleanor & Edsel Ford in Grosse Pointe Shores, which hosts the annual, week-long EyesOn Design automotive design show.

Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.

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