Ugo Zagato (25 June 1890, Gavello - 31 October 1968) was an Italian automobile designer, known for establishing and running the Zagato coachbuilder, famous for its lightweight designs.
He had five brothers and lost his father (1905), forcing him to emigrate to Germany and metalworks employment in Köln (1905). He returned to serve in the military (1909) and joined car coachbuilder Carrozzeria Varesina in Varese, while studying at the Santa Maria design school. During World War I he moved to Torino and joined the Pomilio aircraft manufacturer, learning lightweight bodycrafting (1915–1919). He established Carrozzeria Ugo Zagato & Co., a workshop in Milano (1919), where he built close ties with Alfa Romeo. His workshop was destroyed and rebuilt as La Zagato outside Milano after World War II, joined by his sons Elio Zagato (1921–2009) in 1946, and Gianni Zagato (born 1929). His sons continued operations on Ugo Zagatos passing (1968).
It appears that we have reached the edge
That zenith where stimuli and comatose collide
Forty years ago the man proclaimed
The age of the gross to be upon us
And even though the man was destroying our heritage
And insulting our intelligence
That era has become very real
We labor for pleasure and abhor the guilt of pressure
My generation will go down as the architects
Of contemporary disgust
Some have fought and died
Others have allowed the strong to be butchered for a price
They themselves don't care about and will never understand
I myself am beleaguered by the selfish face
Of a kind of man that is not mankind
Distrust in information
Fundamentalism of opinion
Catastrophic boredom and a fanatical devotion
To that which does not matter
Where is your glory now, people?
Where are your Gods and politicians?
Where is your shame and salvation?
You rage for no reason because you have no reason
What have you ever fought for?
What have you ever bled for?
The face of the earth is scarred with the walking dead
The age of the gross is a living virus
This is the future you have created
This is the world you have set ablaze
All your lies are coming true