In the area of production vehicles, Exner was responsible for the "Forward Look" lines of 19. These cars were used by Chrysler as styling survey and sales promotion products. While at Chrysler, Exner was responsible for the development of sixteen "idea" cars, built by the Ghia firm of Italy. By 1953, Exner was put in charge of all corporation styling, and in 1957, he was named Vice-president of Styling, a post he held until his retirement from Chrysler in 1961. In 1949, Exner joined Chrysler Corporation as head of the newly established Advanced Design Studio. Now, as chief styling engineer for Studebaker, Exner was responsible for developing several new lines of automobiles: the first Champion in 1939, a new line of Champion, Commander, and President models in 1941, and the 1947 post-war model, the Starlight coupe. After only four years at GM, however, Exner was lured away to join Raymond Loewy's industrial design firm and was placed in charge of the Studebaker Corporation account. In 1934, Exner moved to Harley Earl's Art and Colour Section at General Motors Corporation, where he was quickly promoted to the position of Chief Designer for Pontiac Studios. Exner's illustrations for Studebaker catalogs are among his finest work in this period. It was while at Advertising Artists, that Exner began his association with Studebaker Corporation, who held an account with the agency. He studied art at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana (1927-1928) but left before completing a degree to take employment as a layout artist and illustrator with a South Bend, Indiana firm, Advertising Artists. Born in 1909 in Ann Arbor, Michigan, Virgil Max Exner exhibited artistic talent and an interest in automobile design early in life.
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