Ugo Zagato (25 June 1890, in

Gavello Gavello is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Rovigo in the Italian region Veneto, located about southwest of Venice and about southeast of Rovigo. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 1,616 and an area of .All demographics ...

– 31 October 1968) was an Italian automobile designer, known for establishing and running the

Zagato Zagato is an independent coachbuilding company and total design centre located northwest of Milan in Terrazzano, a small village near Rho, Lombardy, Italy. The company's premises occupies an area of 23,000 square metres (250,000 sq ft)- 11,000 of ...

coachbuilder, famous for its lightweight designs. He had five brothers and lost his father (1905), forcing him to emigrate to

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

and metalworks employment in Köln (1905). He returned to serve in the military (1909) and joined car coachbuilder Carrozzeria Varesina in

Varese Varese ( , , or ; lmo, label= Varesino, Varés ; la, Baretium; archaic german: Väris) is a city and ''comune'' in north-western Lombardy, northern Italy, north-west of Milan. The population of Varese in 2018 has reached 80,559. It is the c ...

, while studying at the Santa Maria design school. During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

he moved to

Torino Turin ( , Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. T ...

and joined the

Pomilio Fabbrica Aeroplani Ing. O. Pomilio was an Italian World War I biplane aircraft manufacturer. The Pomilio series of aircraft ( PC, PD, PE and PY) were two-seater scout aircraft. When first introduced in spring 1917, the type was faster than mo ...

aircraft manufacturer, learning lightweight body construction (1915–1919). He established Carrozzeria Ugo Zagato & Co., a workshop in

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

(1919), where he built close ties with

Alfa Romeo Alfa Romeo Automobiles S.p.A. () is an Italian luxury car manufacturer and a subsidiary of Stellantis. The company was founded on 24 June 1910, in Milan, Italy. "Alfa" is an acronym of its founding name, "Anonima Lombarda Fabbrica Automobili." ...

. His workshop was destroyed and rebuilt as La Zagato outside Milan after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, joined in 1946 by his sons

Elio Zagato Elio Zagato (27 February 192114 September 2009) was an Italian automobile designer. Like his brother Gianni Zagato (born 1929), Elio Zagato joined his father Ugo Zagato's design firm Zagato in Milan and, upon the father's death in 1968, took ov ...

(1921–2009), and

Gianni Zagato Gianni is an Italian name (occasionally a surname), a short form of the Italian Giovanni and a cognate of John meaning God is gracious. Gianni is the most common diminutive of Giovanni in Italian. People with this given name * Gianni Agnelli (i ...

(born 1929). His sons continued operations on Ugo Zagatos passing (1968).

Awards

* Compasso d'Oro 1960 for the

Fiat Fiat Automobiles S.p.A. (, , ; originally FIAT, it, Fabbrica Italiana Automobili di Torino, lit=Italian Automobiles Factory of Turin) is an Italian automobile manufacturer, formerly part of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, and since 2021 a subsidiary ...

Abarth Abarth & C. S.p.A. () is an Italian racing and road car maker and Car tuning, performance division founded by Italo-Austrian Carlo Abarth in 1949. Abarth & C. S.p.A. is owned by Stellantis through its FCA Italy, Italian subsidiary. Its logo is a ...

1000

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Zagato, Ugo Italian automobile designers People from the Province of Rovigo 1890 births 1968 deaths Alfa Romeo people Compasso d'Oro Award recipients