This Is How Polestar’s New Design Studio Looks

• EV maker Polestar opens its own design studio in Gothenburg, Sweden, near Volvo's headquarters and also near a dense forest.

• The building, originally completed in 1984, was designed by architects Romaldo Giurgola and Owe Svärd, and has now been renovated inside in accordance with Polestar's design aesthetic.

• Polestar started out as a Volvo tuner, before becoming an in-house racing and tuning arm, and eventually an EV brand of its own.

Polestar has already impressed the EV world with its design language, but until this month it didn't even have its own dedicated creative space. The electric carmaker has just opened its own design studio in Volvo's home city of Gothenburg, Sweden, for its 120 team members.

Automakers' studios are often reflections of their design philosophies, and Polestar's roots as a Volvo tuner are fully reflected in the location chosen—a dense forest next to Volvo's headquarters. Penned by Italian architect Romaldo Giurgola and Sweden's Owe Svärd, the 1984 building was a former Volvo facility, and has now been updated with modern Scandinavian elements by Polestar's head of design, Maximilian Missoni.

"When such care, attention to detail, and material quality was so carefully considered at the point of construction back in 1982, it was important to me that we respected the original intentions when integrating our studio into the building," Missoni said. "We deliberately showcase the original structure and detailing, respecting the very fabric that gives it its unique character.

The new studio now features a clay working station, specialist showroom area, material and color lab, several digital studio spaces, VR rooms, meeting spaces, and an auditorium.

But does the minimalist, Scandinavian aesthetic of the design studio reflect the design language of the existing Polestar vehicles, like the recently revealed Polestar 3?

Missoni certainly thinks so.

"In today's age of advanced product design it's quite easy to display emotions like aggression and sportiness in a car. But try conveying intelligence in design—it’s not so easy," Missoni said. "This is something we have spent a lot of time considering, to express the leading technology and sophistication of Polestar 3. It is distilled to the essence of an SUV but at the same time clearly shows a step into a new era."

Recent designs we've seen from Polestar confirm this approach, with Missoni's team opting for rhomboid shapes and a penchant for 45-degree angles in sculpting the surfaces of its newest models.

The production version of the Polestar 3, due on sale this year, and the Polestar 5 planned for 2024, all share a family look featuring sharp angles and a mix of concave and convex surfaces, in addition to pronounced sill lines. The designs stand in contrast to a continued industry fascination with slabby, featureless sides, largely dictated by aerodynamics.

Polestar has been careful to avoid most of the current trends of electric SUV and sedan designs, quite a few of which continue to be influenced by Tesla, especially in China.

Should Polestar turn its attention to smaller, more affordable vehicles, or is the main EV demand at the moment still for larger, luxury electric models? Let us know in the comments below.