Friday, September 03, 2004
Nick Pugh
Nick Pugh is an independent concept designer, engineer and fabricator whose mission is to do advanced design and research in transportation, entertainment and architecture. Born in Paris, France, he attended schools in England, Rio de Janeiro, and Berkeley, California before graduating from Art Center with a B.S. in transportation design.
Pugh’s design and automotive work has been published in Wired, Omni, Metropolis, LA Times, GQ and numerous other publications, and he was a featured guest on the recent TV shows “The Ride Of Your Life” and “Rolling Art TV.” He is a central figure in the book Build the Perfect Beast by Mark Christensen, which chronicles the building of Pugh’s first personal concept car--the XENO III that was unveiled in January ‘02 to over 700 guests and media at Art Center. XENO III has since been on exhibit in the United States and Europe.
Pugh is a co-founder of NGV-USA, the company that created the patented fuel storage chassis that increases the range of natural-gas and hydrogen powered vehicles. This ARPA sponsored project culminated in the first unsupported drive across the US (from Los Angeles to Washington DC) in a dedicated NGV. Other automotive projects include design and engineering consulting for Mitsubishi, Hyundai, GM and DZN Studio.
His work in the entertainment field includes projects for Warner Brothers, Universal and Chiat Day. He currently is contracted as a concept artist at Rhythm and Hues Studios on projects ranging from TV commercials and feature films to motion rides. He was instrumental in the design of Scooby in the 3D Scooby Doo movies and of Garfield in the recent 20th Century Fox release.
His current automotive projects focus on the design and development of personal concept cars for other clients. Pugh’s work bridges the gap between the world of exotic artistic design and that of the hands-on production engineer. Nick Pugh is married with a beautiful one year old daughter, Serena, and lives in Long Beach, California.