Sculpture “Aesthetics A”: A study in proportions

Creases have had their day. The Design team’s “ Aesthetics A” sculpture presents the vision of a saloon car in the compact car segment which has been radically stripped down to the essential body. It also provides a clear indication of how the design philosophy of Sensual Purity will be manifested in the not too distant future.


In applying the design philosophy of Sensual Purity, with the current A-Class Mercedes‑Benz initiated a design shift whose formative influence was to extend beyond the brand itself.

The “Aesthetics A” sculpture embodies the advancement of the Mercedes‑Benz design idiom. It focuses on stripping everything down to the essentials, underscoring this with emotional highlights. “ Form and body are what remain when creases and lines are reduced to the extreme. We have the courage to apply this purism”, says Design head Gorden Wagener. “In combination with perfect proportions and sensual surface design, the upcoming generation of the compact class has the potential to herald a new design era”.


Instead of modifying the basic form with lines, the Mercedes‑B enz designers use dynamic surfaces positioned at an angle to one another to contour the body through the use of light and shade and to emphasize the proportions. This makes the essence of a body visible and communicates it in a credible way. The expressive and confident red as a new signature Mercedes‑Benz colour underscores the sensuality and emotion of the sculpture.


The concentration on proportions and form also requires special work methods. “At the beginning of the process our work is comparable to that of sculptors”, explains Wagener. “The classic techniques still form the core of our creative work. The clay model plays a central role here: one can’t carry out a final assessment of a design on a computer, because a screen is two-dimensional, while a car is three-dimensional”.

“Aesthetics A” has a 3-box design, marking a departure in the direction of new markets for the compact class. Outside of Germany and Europe, classic saloons are still much in demand in this segment.

The “Aesthetics A” sculpture is a continuation of a series of sculptures from Mercedes‑Benz which to date comprises the “ Aesthetics No. 1” (2010), “Aesthetics No. 2”, “Aesthetics 125” (both 2011) and “Aesthetics S” (2012).