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 | News Release Design Center P.O. Box 2110, Dearborn, Mich. 48123 Telephone: (313) 322-3755 |
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There's a new breed of galloping Mustang emblem for the 1974 Mustang II, the first of a generation of new little sporty cars from Ford Division.
The refined Mustang II sculpture appears on the grille and also is part of the car's "Mustang II" trademark on the side markings and instrument panel applique. The design was created by Charles Keresztes, a clay sculptor at the Ford Motor Company Design Center in Dearborn, Mich. Not only is Mr. Keresztes and outstanding sculptor, but he also is an expert horseman whose equestrian career began at the age of four in his native Hungary. Born in Budapest in 1925, he is the second son of the late Baron and Baroness Akos Keresztes. He and his older brother were trained in horsemanship by their father, a gifted artist and one of Europe's foremost horsemen. When he was 12 years old, Mr. Keresztes began jumping competitively and also was participating in steeplechase and fox-hunting. At age 17, Mr. Keresztes was selected for a position on the Hungarian Olympic Equestrian team. He graduated from the Royal Hungarian Military Academy and served as a first lieutenant in the Royal Hungarian Cavalry during World War II. His older brother was killed on the Russian Front, while Mr. Keresztes' military career ended in April, 1945, with the conclusion of the war. He was exiled from Hungary in 1945 and never again saw his parents, who dies in their native land. Mr. Keresztes settled in Duesseldorf, Germany, where he entered the Duesseldorf Academy of Fine Arts in 1947. He received his masters degree in sculpture in 1951. Mr. Keresztes immigrated to the United States in 1951 "purely by luck." One of hundreds of thousands of Europeans who wanted to settle in the United States after the war, his name was selected "at random" by immigration. Mr. Keresztes remembers, "From that point on, I had no idea of my destination in this country until, after going through customs, I was told my sponsor was the First Presbyterian Church in Dearborn." Although design jobs were scarce in Detroit in the early 1950's, Mr. Keresztes joined the Ford Styling Staff in 1951 as an illustrator. His first major assignment was design and clay modeling on the Continental Mark II. During his 20 years with Ford, he has worked as a clay modeler and sculptor in all of the production and advanced automotive design studios, plus the Industrial Design Office. "The new Mustang design is reminiscent of the old one -- it has the same gait and the same youthful, exuberant look and feeling," Mr. Keresztes said. "But it is more finely detailed and as an equestrian, I'd say it is a more precise representation of the galloping Mustang." Given the assignment of creating a new Mustang emblem in July, 1972, Mr. Keresztes first did library research on the Mustang breed and studied the paintings of Frederic Remington, famed Nineteenth Century artist of the Old West. He next drew thumbnail sketches and later presented five detailed renderings to top company management. He completed a bas relief sculpture of the "winning" design in plasticine (a clay-like substance) -- four times the size of the emblem on the Mustang II grille. This was cast in plaster and then in epoxy, a hard, plastic material. The epoxy master model was reduced three-dimensionally on a penagraph machine to the size required to cast a sample metal production die. This was not Mr. Keresztes' first sculpture for a Ford Motor Company product -- he previously created the Cougar and Pinto automotive symbols. Mr. Keresztes now sculpts and paints on a commission basis for his own enjoyment. He taught basic drawing at Wayne State University for four years and currently give private instruction in sculpture and drawing. He also enjoys sailing, skiing, fencing and tennis. However, he very seldom rides a horse today. "If you don't have your own horse, riding a rented horse is like driving a rented automobile. You feel the movement, but you don't have the same enjoyment as you would if it were your own pinto or mustang." Mr. Keresztes, who became a naturalized citizen in 1956, is fluent in his native Hungarian and German. He and his wife, Karen, live in Detroit. | |
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