Acclaimed industrial designer Joey Ruiter takes a mad scientist approach to his creations. His goal is to strip away conformity, to get away from the conventions of the past which, in his view, includes too much clutter. Thus, Ruiter-designed motorcycles look like ice-boxes on wheels and cars…well, see for yourself. Reboot Buggy is a four-wheeled box that goes 150 miles an hour and climbs over rocks. Functional yes, but the primary catalyst is aesthetics.
“I want to make things people have never seen before,” says Ruiter. The Michigan-based designer has been rebuilding cars since he was 14 and has been continually frustrated by how much stuff we put on them. Radios, air conditioning and the like are creature comforts for the passenger.
“When you add the human to things it becomes something for us. So a car today is for us. But what does it do for itself?, he asks. So Ruiter took another approach. “In this project the car wanted things for itself. Where the motor was placed was for the car’s sake not for the human’s sake. Where the wheelbase was was for the car’s sake.” A car is literally nuts and bolts he says and part of the creation is working with tools and materials.
“We’ve done things in the shop that the computer said was impossible. Twist it a little bit, hit it with a bigger hammer and let’s see what happens. It’s all about simple materials put together in complex ways. That’s what drives me, how far can you push it?”
Commuter Car takes the minimalist approach one step further. Devoid of bumpers, body sculpting and wheel wells, Commuter Car is the simplest expression of form and function. Less is less. Like it’s sibling Reboot Buggy, Commuter Car is not just an exercise in design. It works. It runs. And these pieces don’t sit on the shelf either. His one-off creations are purchased by consumers who share his vision.
See for yourself at the Peterson Automobile Museum in Los Angeles. Make an offer and drive one away. Ruiter’s creations are on display until March 2020.
