One of my “rules” of car show photography is, if I come across a Studebaker, I must shoot it. Of all the orphaned American automotive brands, Studebaker is probably my favorite. In the post-war era, their tension between budget and innovation was the force behind some very impressive cars. They worked with designers such as Brooks Stevens and the genius that was Raymond Lowey, who gave their cars of the ’50s and early ’60s an almost european sensibility, combined with a dash of American optimism. Unfortunately, without the resources of GM, Ford, or Chrysler, they just couldn’t compete on price or product volume. It’s too bad, because they left some brilliant ideas on the drawing board and were very smart regarding the american automotive market of the time. When the first american small car trend started at the end of the ’50s, the Studebaker Lark was probably the most sophisticated of all the domestic offerings. It also made for an excellent platform for Studebaker’s swan song, the Avanti, but I’ll save that for another blog entry.
If you’d like to see what I see in vintage Studebakers, check out my flickr album dedicated to the marque.
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