Keith Helfet is a South African automotive designer.
After demonstrating little academic promise in
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
, Helfet turned to art. He had a natural affinity for automotive design and was accepted as a student into the most prestigious automotive styling programme in the world at the
Royal College of Art
The Royal College of Art (RCA) is a public research university in London, United Kingdom, with campuses in South Kensington, Battersea and White City. It is the only entirely postgraduate art and design university in the United Kingdom. It offe ...
in London.
A native of South Africa, Helfet became the Principal Stylist at
Jaguar (car)
Jaguar (, ) is the luxury vehicle brand of Jaguar Land Rover, a British multinational car manufacturer with its headquarters in Whitley, Coventry, England. Jaguar Cars was the company that was responsible for the production of Jaguar cars ...
where his work was admired by Sir
William Lyons
Sir William Lyons"Sir William Lyons – The Official Biography" by Philip Porter & Paul Skilleter, Haynes Publishing (4 September 1901 – 8 February 1985), known as "Mr. Jaguar", was with fellow motorcycle enthusiast William Walmsley, the co ...
who had shaped the character of design at the brand for decades.
Helfet designed the Jaguar
XJ-220,
XK-180 and the stillborn
Jaguar F-Type Concept Car
The jaguar (''Panthera onca'') is a large cat species and the only living member of the genus ''Panthera'' native to the Americas. With a body length of up to and a weight of up to , it is the largest cat species in the Americas and the thi ...
.
Helfet now runs his own design company, Helfet Design.
References
Brother-in-Law, The Designer
ttps://archive.today/20130415075753/http://www.jag-lovers.org/brochures/xk180/xk180prtext.txt/ THE JAGUAR XK180 A CONCEPT ROADSTER FOR THE NEW MILLENNIUMbr>Jaguar F-Type
Alumni of the Royal College of Art
Living people
Year of birth missing (living people)
South African automobile designers
South African motorsport people
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