#TomTjaarda

Tom Tjaarda (full name Stevens Thompson Tjaarda van Starkenberg) (Detroit, 23 July 1934 - Turin, 1 June 2017) was an American designer of Dutch origins, who worked as a designer and car stylist almost exclusively in Italy , making cars for Ferrari, FIAT and De Tomaso. Son of the Dutch-American Joop van Starkenberg Tjaarda (1897-1962), renamed John Tjaarda, appreciated designer of the thirties and creator of the Lincoln Zephyr, he decided to follow in his father's footsteps. Graduated in architecture from the University of Michigan, it was during the degree course that he was noticed by Luigi Segre, head of style at Ghia, who, having seen his project for a sports station wagon, offered him a specialization course. The opportunity to work in the homeland of automotive design was indispensable for Tjaarda and, on the spot, he moved to Turin. During the two-year internship at Ghia, he collaborated on many projects for production models, prototypes and concept cars, before being hired, in 1962, to Pininfarina where he participated in the construction of some cars, the most famous of which is certainly the Fiat 124. Sport Spider. In 1965 he moved to OSI and, after the release of Giorgetto Giugiaro, he returned to Ghia where he was responsible for the design, among others, of the De Tomaso Pantera. In 1978 he was hired by the Fiat group to direct the subsidiary Advanced Design Studio which will take care of the stylistic project for the Autobianchi Y10, the Fiat Croma and the Lancia Thema. Three years later he moved to Rayton Fissore to carry out the Magnum project and, in 1985, he decided to set up his own business, founding the Dimensione Design, later changed into Tjaarda Design. In addition to the automotive field, he has lent his skills as a designer to the realization of the Silvercraft SH-200 helicopter and various furnishing components.

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