CCS Celebrates the Life of Prolific Auto Designer and Longtime Educator Bill Robinson
February 17, 2022CCS joins the entire design community in mourning the loss of Bill Robinson, influential automotive designer and longtime CCS educator, who has passed away at the age of 96.
Bill Robinson, Automotive Designer and CCS Educator
Following a very successful design career, Robinson became an instructor at CCS and for 22 years educated a generation of car designers, leaving a profound legacy of aesthetic influence on the automotive industry.
“It is not an overstatement to say that many, many designers working in the industry today owe a debt of gratitude to Bill. He was renowned not only for his wealth of knowledge, but also for his warm, thoughtful instruction.” said Paul Snyder, Paul & Helen Farago Chair of CCS’s undergraduate Transportation Design program, CCS alumnus and former student of Robinsons. “He provided just the right balance of passion and discipline for those under his tutelage.”
“Bill was instrumental and influential in so many ways in my education at CCS,” said Tim Flattery, dean of undergraduate studies at CCS and renowned Hollywood concept designer. “His wealth of experience and gentle manner elevated my skillset and professionalism. His life was inspirational and his legacy will highlight that. What an amazing man.”
After his retirement from CCS, Robinson continued to be very active in the community, attending school events, always sharing entertaining industry stories and taking great joy in seeing his former students succeed as designers. Every year he made sure to stop by CCS’s booth at the Detroit International Auto Show to see the work and say hello.
A memorial service will be held on March 4, 2022 at 11 a.m. at Kirk in the Hills Presbyterian Church in Bloomfield Township, Michigan.
Read more about Robinson’s career and the mark he left on several CCS alumni here.
