Welcome to part three of our exclusive four-part interview series, where we’re looking to find out what Audi’s iconic slogan – Vorsprung durch Technik, or progress through technology – means on a more personal level to the people at the forefront of Audi design and engineering.
Here we sit down with Christoph Häußinger, the mastermind behind the groundbreaking lighting design for the new all-electric Audi A6 e-tron and Audi Q6 e-tron.
Also in the series: Exterior design extraordinaire Frank Lamberty; head of aerodynamics and aeroacoustics, Dr. Moni Islam; and interior designer Ramon Bäurle.
Discover the all-electric Audi e-tron range
Introduce yourself and what you do…My name is Christoph Häußinger and I'm a lighting designer at Audi. This means I'm responsible for creating front and rear exterior light designs.
There are many steps in the process of lighting design. We start by creating the overall light graphic itself – how the light will look, a bit like a graphic designer. Then we have to find the right character for the car – sporty, sleek etc. Then we move on to the materials and the hardware. Then, finally, on the A6 e-tron in particular, we focused on creating the welcome scenarios, the animations, the digitalisation, which is something totally new. It’s a really interesting and challenging job.
What’s your personal interpretation of Vorsprung durch Technik?My interpretation of Vorsprung durch Technik is never stop exploring. It's about being curious and always questioning what's next.
Where do you find inspiration for your work?
I think I find inspiration mostly in good product design, so in high-quality products. I'm really looking into it and try to find solutions to bring this in our cars.
Also, I'm inspired by faces of people and of animals. The humans are always looking for faces. If you're looking somewhere, you always see faces. And this is the same with cars.
Why is light, and lighting design, so important?