Luc Donckerwolke (born 19 June 1965) is a Belgian automotive designer, president, and chief creative officer of the Hyundai Motor Group and the

Genesis Genesis may refer to: Bible * Book of Genesis, the first book of the biblical scriptures of both Judaism and Christianity, describing the creation of the Earth and of mankind * Genesis creation narrative, the first several chapters of the Book of ...

automotive brand. Prior to joining the Hyundai Motor Group, he was the design director at Volkswagen Group's

Bentley Bentley Motors Limited is a British designer, manufacturer and marketer of luxury cars and SUVs. Headquartered in Crewe, England, the company was founded as Bentley Motors Limited by W. O. Bentley (1888–1971) in 1919 in Cricklewood, North ...

Lamborghini Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A. () is an Italian brand and manufacturer of luxury sports cars and SUVs based in Sant'Agata Bolognese. The company is owned by the Volkswagen Group through its subsidiary Audi. Ferruccio Lamborghini (1916–1993) ...

Škoda Škoda means ''pity'' in the Czech and Slovak languages. It may also refer to: Czech brands and enterprises * Škoda Auto, automobile and previously bicycle manufacturer in Mladá Boleslav ** Škoda Motorsport, the division of Škoda Auto respons ...

, and

Audi Audi AG () is a German automotive manufacturer of luxury vehicles headquartered in Ingolstadt, Bavaria, Germany. As a subsidiary of its parent company, the Volkswagen Group, Audi produces vehicles in nine production facilities worldwide. Th ...

brands. In 2022, a jury panel of 102 journalists among 33 countries named Donckerwolke the ''World Car Person of the Year'' for significantly impacting the automotive industry.

Background

Donckerwolke was born in

Lima Lima ( ; ), originally founded as Ciudad de Los Reyes (City of The Kings) is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rivers, in the desert zone of t ...

, Peru, and educated in various South American and African countries before studying

industrial engineering Industrial engineering is an engineering profession that is concerned with the optimization of complex process (engineering), processes, systems, or organizations by developing, improving and implementing integrated systems of people, money, kno ...

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

and transportation design in

Vevey Vevey (; frp, Vevê; german: label=former German, Vivis) is a town in Switzerland in the canton of Vaud, on the north shore of Lake Geneva, near Lausanne. The German name Vivis is no longer commonly used. It was the seat of the district of ...

, Switzerland. He has a residence in Germany and in Brussels. His hobbies include

motor racing Motorsport, motorsports or motor sport is a global term used to encompass the group of competitive sporting events which primarily involve the use of motorized vehicles. The terminology can also be used to describe forms of competition of two ...

old cars Old or OLD may refer to: Places *Old, Baranya, Hungary *Old, Northamptonshire, England *Old Street station, a railway and tube station in London (station code OLD) *OLD, IATA code for Old Town Municipal Airport and Seaplane Base, Old Town, Mai ...

, foreign cultures and learning languages. He speaks Dutch, Italian, French, Spanish, English, German, Korean,

Mandarin Mandarin or The Mandarin may refer to: Language * Mandarin Chinese, branch of Chinese originally spoken in northern parts of the country ** Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Mandarin, the official language of China ** Taiwanese Mandarin, Stand ...

, Japanese and Swahili.

Career

Donckerwolke began his design career in 1990 with

Peugeot Peugeot (, , ) is a French brand of automobiles owned by Stellantis. The family business that preceded the current Peugeot companies was founded in 1810, with a steel foundry that soon started making hand tools and kitchen equipment, and the ...

in France. In 1992 he moved to

Ingolstadt Ingolstadt (, Austro-Bavarian: ) is an independent city on the Danube in Upper Bavaria with 139,553 inhabitants (as of June 30, 2022). Around half a million people live in the metropolitan area. Ingolstadt is the second largest city in Upper Bav ...

for a two-year stint at

Design. He spent 1994 to 1996 working at the

Design Center in Mlada Boleslav, in the Czech Republic, where he contributed to the 1996

Škoda Octavia The Škoda Octavia is a small family car produced by the Czech car manufacturer Škoda Auto since the end of 1996. It shares its name with an earlier model produced between 1959 and 1971. Four generations of the modern-era Octavia model have ...

and 1999

Škoda Fabia The Škoda Fabia is a supermini car produced by Czech manufacturer Škoda Auto since 1999. It is the successor of the Škoda Felicia, which was discontinued in 2001. The Fabia was available in hatchback, estate (named Fabia Combi) and saloon ( ...

. After Škoda he returned to Audi responsible for concept development, operating out of Ingolstadt for one year and

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

for another. It was during this time he worked on the

Audi A4 The Audi A4 is a line of compact executive cars produced since 1994 by the German car manufacturer Audi, a subsidiary of the Volkswagen Group. The A4 has been built in five generations and is based on the Volkswagen Group B platform. The first ...

Avant and the

Audi R8 The Audi R8 is a mid-engine, 2-seater sports car, which uses Audi's trademark quattro permanent all-wheel drive system. It was introduced by the German car manufacturer Audi AG in 2006. The car is exclusively designed, developed, and manufactu ...

Le Mans Racer. During his time at Audi, Donckerwolke was also responsible for the design of the

Audi A2 The Audi A2 (internally designated ''Typ'' 8Z) is a compact MPV-styled supermini car, with a five-door hatchback body style and four or five seats,ETKA official factory data produced by the German manufacturer Audi from November 1999 (for the 200 ...

concept and production car, which was known at the time for being innovative and ahead of its time, like many of his designs. He was head of design at

from 1998, where he was responsible for the 2001

Lamborghini Diablo The Lamborghini Diablo is a high-performance mid-engine sports car built by Italian automobile manufacturer Lamborghini between 1990 and 2001. It is the first production Lamborghini capable of attaining a top speed in excess of . After the end ...

VT 6.0, 2002

Lamborghini Murciélago The Lamborghini Murciélago is a sports car produced by Italian automotive manufacturer Lamborghini between 2001 and 2010. Successor to the Diablo and flagship V12 of the automaker's lineup, the Murciélago was introduced as a coupé in 2001. ...

and 2004

Lamborghini Gallardo The Lamborghini Gallardo (; ) is a sports car built by the Italian automotive manufacturer Lamborghini from 2003 to 2013. It is Lamborghini's second car released under parent company Audi, and best-selling model with 14,022 built throughout its ...

, winning the 'Red Dot Award' in 2003 in recognition for his work on them. He also worked with

Walter de'Silva Walter Maria de Silva (born 27 February 1951 in Lecco, Italy) is an Italian car designer and former head of Volkswagen Group Design, until 2015. Since beginning his car design career in 1972 as trainee car designer for Fiat's Style Centre. De S ...

to produce the 2006

Lamborghini Miura concept The Lamborghini Miura Concept is a retro styled concept car introduced by Lamborghini in 2006 and built to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the introduction of the original Miura concept at the Geneva Motor Show in 1966. Codenamed "Concept M" ...

. In September 2005, Donckerwolke was appointed

SEAT A seat is a place to sit. The term may encompass additional features, such as back, armrest, head restraint but also headquarters in a wider sense. Types of seat The following are examples of different kinds of seat: * Armchair (furniture), ...

Design Director overseeing the design of future SEAT models, replacing Walter de'Silva who was promoted to oversee design for the entire Audi Brand Group. He was tasked with progressing SEAT design from Walter de'Silva's directorship to a look that would bring increased brand awareness and sales to the marque. His first visible contribution to SEAT was the

SEAT Tribu The SEAT Tribu was a compact SUV concept car that was built by the Spain, Spanish automotive industry, automaker SEAT, SEAT, S.A. in the autumn of 2007. Overview The first time when the name ''Tribu'' was used by SEAT was at the Frankfurt Motor ...

concept, unveiled at the 2007 Frankfurt Motor Show; he later penned the 2008

SEAT Ibiza The SEAT Ibiza is a supermini car that has been manufactured by Spanish car manufacturer SEAT since 1984. It is SEAT's best-selling car. The Ibiza is named after the Spanish island of Ibiza and was the second SEAT model to be named after a Spani ...

. In September 2012, Donckerwolke was appointed

Director Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''D ...

Design A design is a plan or specification for the construction of an object or system or for the implementation of an activity or process or the result of that plan or specification in the form of a prototype, product, or process. The verb ''to design'' ...

, overseeing the design of future Bentley models, replacing

Dirk van Braeckel Dirk van Braeckel (born 19 February 1958 in Deinze), is a Belgian car designer. He is known for the designing of various models for Volkswagen Group, especially for the Bentley brand. Career Born in Deinze, after leaving school, van Braeckel st ...

who moved to

Volkswagen Group Volkswagen AG (), known internationally as the Volkswagen Group, is a German multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Wolfsburg, Lower Saxony, Germany. The company designs, manufactures and distributes passenger and commercial ...

Design. In June 2015 Bentley announced Stefan Sielaff as his successor: "Mr Sielaff replaces Mr Donckerwolke who has decided to leave the business and

Volkswagen AG Volkswagen AG (), known internationally as the Volkswagen Group, is a German multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Wolfsburg, Lower Saxony, Germany. The company designs, manufactures and distributes passenger and commercial ...

". In November 2015, he was tapped to lead

Hyundai Motor Group The Hyundai Motor Group (HMG; ; ; stylized as HYUΠDAI) is a South Korean '' chaebol'' (loosely similar to a multinational conglomerate but without a central holding company or ownership structure) headquartered in Seoul, South Korea. The HM ...

luxury Luxury may refer to: * Luxury goods, an economic good or service for which demand increases more than proportionally as income rises *Luxury tax, tax on products not considered essential, such as expensive cars **Luxury tax (sports), surcharge pu ...

brand A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's good or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create an ...

from 2016 and work together with

Hyundai Hyundai is a South Korean industrial conglomerate ("chaebol"), which was restructured into the following groups: * Hyundai Group, parts of the former conglomerate which have not been divested ** Hyundai Mobis, Korean car parts company ** Hyundai ...

Kia Kia Corporation, commonly known as Kia (, ; formerly known as Kyungsung Precision Industry and Kia Motors Corporation), is a South Korean multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Seoul, South Korea. It is South Korea's second lar ...

chief designer The engineering design process is a common series of steps that engineers use in creating functional products and processes. The process is highly iterative - parts of the process often need to be repeated many times before another can be entere ...

Peter Schreyer Peter Schreyer (born 1953) is a German automobile designer widely known for his design contributions to the Audi TT. He has been the chief design officer at Kia Motors since 2006 and, on 28 December 2012, he was named one of three presidents of ...

. Donckerwolke replaced

Chief Design Officer Chief Design Officer (CDO), or design executive officer (DEO), is a corporate title sometimes given to an executive in charge of an organization's design initiatives. The CDO is typically responsible for overseeing all design and innovation aspects ...

in 2017, a position from which he resigned in April 2020. In November 2020, Donckerwolke rejoined Hyundai Motor Group as Chief Creative Officer (CCO) of the Group and the Genesis brand. In light of his significant contributions, he was name
President of the Hyundai Motor Group
in November 2022.

Designs

Mk1 (1996) *

Mk1 (1999) *

Avant (2000) *

Le Mans Racer (2000) *

(2000) *

VT 6.0 (2001) *

(2002) *

(2004) *

concept (2007) * SEAT Ibiza / SEAT Ibiza SC / SEAT Ibiza ST Mk4 (2008) * SEAT IBE concept (2010) * Bentley Flying Spur (2013) *

Bentley EXP 10 Speed 6 The Bentley EXP 10 Speed 6 is a hybrid concept car by Bentley launched in 2015 at the Geneva Motor Show. Overview The Bentley EXP 10 is two seat coupe that was smaller than the Bentley Continental GT at the time. It takes its name from the ...

(2015) *

Hyundai Kona The Hyundai Kona ( ko, 현대 코나) is a subcompact crossover SUV produced by the South Korean manufacturer Hyundai. The first-generation Kona debuted in June 2017 and the production version was revealed later that year. It is positioned betwee ...

(2017) *

Hyundai Palisade The Hyundai Palisade ( ko, 현대 팰리세이드) is a mid-size crossover SUV manufactured by Hyundai Motor Company since late 2018. It replaces the Maxcruz (also known as Hyundai Santa Fe, Santa Fe XL outside of South Korea) as the flagship SU ...

(2018) *

Hyundai Sonata The Hyundai Sonata is a mid-size car that has been manufactured by Hyundai since 1985. The first generation Sonata, which was introduced in 1985, was a facelifted Hyundai Stellar with an engine upgrade, and was withdrawn from the market in two ...

(2020) *

Hyundai Elantra The Hyundai Elantra, also known as the Hyundai Avante ( ko, 현대 아반떼), is a compact car produced by the South Korean manufacturer Hyundai Motor Company, Hyundai since 1990. The Elantra was initially marketed as the ''Lantra'' in Austra ...

(2021) *

Genesis GV80 The Genesis GV80 ( ko, 제네시스 GV80) is a mid-size luxury crossover SUV manufactured and marketed by Genesis, Hyundai's luxury division. Overview Internally codenamed ''JX1'', the vehicle was leaked in 3D in October 2019 and officially ...

(2020) *

Genesis G80 The Genesis G80 ( ko, 제네시스 G80) is an executive sedan manufactured by South Korean luxury marque Genesis, which is owned by Hyundai Motor Company. The G80 model was previously introduced as the second-generation Hyundai Genesis model ...

(2020) *

Genesis G90 The Genesis G90 is a full-size luxury sedan manufactured by the Korean automaker Genesis, which is the luxury vehicle division of Hyundai Motor Company, since 2015. The G90 is the successor of the Hyundai Equus and was known as the Genesis EQ900 ...

(19/2020) *

Hyundai Tucson The Hyundai Tucson ( ko, 현대 투싼) (pronounced Tu-són) is a compact crossover SUV (C-segment) produced by the South Korean manufacturer Hyundai since 2004. In the brand's lineup, the Tucson is positioned below the Santa Fe, and above the Ko ...

(2021)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Donckerwolke, Luc 1965 births Living people Belgian automobile designers Peugeot people Škoda people Audi people Lamborghini people SEAT people Volkswagen Group designers Belgian people of Peruvian descent