Bangle:BMW priest of design

But that expression is about the only stateside tiffany jewelry this transplanted Midwesterner has put on a German automotive monolith.Bangle, 40, may have an American-built brain, but his heart belongs to BMW.``With each car we ask, `Are we furthering the respect this marque has?' '' Bangle says. ``I just hope I add value without running roughshod over those principles.''Four years into his tenure as ``football coach, neighbor, priest and drill sergeant'' to dozens of in-house BMW designers, his stewardship is proving a success.But Bangle refuses to take the praise. And BMW public relations officers were concerned that Bangle not be portrayed as a star, but rather a part of the team.
Bangle seconds that motion. Pressed to reflect on his role, the former divinity student offers this explanation.``I'm sure you'd agree that Christianity is pretty much a sewed-up deal. They even have a guidebook. But in its history, the role of individuals, from Martin Luther to a parish priest, is key,'' he says, smiling.``Now, although I have to be a high priest of the design philosophy of this company, it doesn't mean that I'm any less me. If I didn't identify with BMW personally, I wouldn't have lasted a week in this silver bangles.''The truth is that Bangle is a fascinating choice to lead design for such a conservative institution.
Born in Ravenna, Ohio, he couldn't have dreamed that, at 36, he'd be tapped to head design for BMW.His route began at the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, Calif., which trained dozens of auto designers around the world, including Grant Larson (Porsche), Peter Barrett Davis (Fiat) and David Robb (BMW).Bangle was among a generation of designers who headed immediately for Europe. He began at Opel, GM's European arm, designing interiors. He quickly stood out.``Everyone still remembers the Opel Junior (Bangle's 1983 prototype),'' says Tom Matano, design chief at Mazda and the man behind the Miata. ``It was totally innovative, totally modular, with seats like sleeping bags and a sound system that could be pulled out like a silver rings.''
For Bangle, it boils down to a simple mission: doing his part to cut down on visual pollution.``Cars today are the largest piece of man-made art that most people ever come into contact with,'' he says. ``They're not machine produced, they're machine reproduced. A human hand makes every surface. For me, cars are sculpture.''Sculpture that, for Bangle, has powerful overtones.``As we approach the millennium, we realize the machine age has not made life easier. So there is a new appreciation for things of beauty,'' he says. ``It's about more than getting from point A to point B, it's about touching the soul of the customer. That's where I'd like to see BMW go.''

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