TTAC Contest: How Can GM Turn Itself Around (In Ten Words or Less)? CLOSED

I discovered Michael Furman’s photography whilst covering the Ralph Lauren car exhibit at The Boston Museum of Fine Arts. The two men were made for each other. Furman’s photographs portray automobiles as perfect objects: gleaming, seamless sculptures that exist outside the confines of entropic reality. Lauren’s collection IS perfect, restored to a level of flawlessness that makes an airbrushed cover shot of Britney Spears look like a photo booth snapshot. And then painted to a gloss to shame Adriana Lima’s luscious lips. When I talked to Furman about Lauren’s collection (Furman shot the catalogue), the artist showed an encyclopedic knowledge of GM’s design heyday. And now, here it is. The publisher was kind enough to send me a couple of copies [full description of the book after the jump]. One goes to Eddy for his birthday (today!). One goes to the commentator who can best tell me, in ten words or less, how GM can turn around its business. Thank you, in advance, for your submissions. [NB: to see the horizontal images properly, please click on them a second time]

“Produced with superb production values and complete editorial independence, Art and Colour is a must-have book for auto aficionados young and old, and will appeal to everyone who has a love affair with the style, elegance and excitement that have characterized General Motors cars, and with the design, romance and beauty of all great American automobiles.

Featuring the photography of Michael Furman, considered the world’s leading photographer of classic cars, and original essays by a virtual all-star team of America’s most distinguished automotive historians and journalists, the book was honored via a gala pre-publication introduction on August 17th at the 2008 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, the most prestigious classic car event in the United States.

With more than 280 pages of stunning color photographs and archival illustrations throughout its 320 pages, Art and Colour examines landmark General Motors designs from the inception of GM’s historic “Art and Colour Section” to the best of modern day and “future” automobiles, and presents most of the major cars–including one-of-a-kind concept cars and iconic cars–that have created General Motors’ legacy for the past 100 years.

The book features the early Cadillacs, Oldsmobiles and Buicks that launched GM; the “Motorama” dream cars that defined a generation of post-war American culture; the Corvettes, Pontiacs and Chevys that powered automotive imagination in the ‘60s; and the latest concept cars, representing the leading edge of automotive design.

Distinguished essayists include Phil Patton of the New York Times, Ken Gross from Playboy magazine, Tracy Powell of Automobile Quarterly, Jerry Burton from Corvette Quarterly, and noted automotive historians Richard S. Adatto, Terry V. Boyce, Jeffery I. Godshall, Lawrence R. Gustin, Tony Hossain and Michael Lamm, as well as Ed Welburn, Vice President for Global Design at GM.

The book also features an introduction by Bob Lutz, Vice Chairman of General Motors, and a forward by world renowned jeweler and car collector Nicola Bulgari. Noted automotive author Jonathan A. Stein served as the book’s editor–his third collaboration with Michael Furman–and design commentary is provided by Stewart Reed, Chairman of Transportation Design at the prestigious Art Center College of Design.”