Jeremy Rhees, a Student in the Department of Design, Designed a Supercar Inspired by Synesthesia (Visualizing Sound) for His Capstone Project.
When Jeremy Rhees began his design senior capstone project, he did not pick up a pen— he hit play on a classical music piece. Rhees wanted to design a product that demonstrated both technical skill and personal vision. He set out to create a concept car unlike anything he had attempted.
Drawing on his experience with synesthesia, a neurological condition that causes him to visualize sound, he let music guide the entire process. As he listened to classical pieces, the sounds took shape on the page, gradually morphing into the clean, stylized lines of a high-end vehicle.
The result was a fully developed supercar concept that merged sleek design with emotional intention. Inspired by the classic curves of Delahaye design recreations, Rhees used musical phrasing to influence everything from the car’s proportions to its overall rhythm and form.
Instead of focusing solely on aesthetics or function, Rhees approached the project as a way to communicate how he thinks. “I think through music,” he said. “It has always been a big part of how my brain works, so I wanted to use that as the foundation for the design, almost like translating a song into a physical form.”
That mindset was encouraged by professor Brian Howell, his capstone mentor, who pushed Rhees to lean into what made his process unique. “He kept telling me to stop hiding how I think, and to really highlight what inspires me,” Rhees said. That shift helped him see that design is not just about the final product, it is about the reasoning and creativity behind it.
By centering his thinking process, Rhees did not just complete a capstone, he created a project that felt deeply personal.
“In the past, I focused on what the product does,” he said. “But explaining how I came up with the concept, walking people through my thinking, helped them understand my process, and it made them more excited about the work.”
That focus on process has also shaped how Rhees is thinking about the future. Rhees knows his path is not typical. People in the industry have told him BYU is not the right place for automotive design and that he should’ve transferred. “But I have decided to take the risk and build the skills myself,” he said.
He is continuing to refine his portfolio while applying to graduate programs in transportation design. At the same time, he is exploring a collaboration with an entrepreneur working with Chinese automakers to develop vehicles for African markets. It is early-stage, but the opportunity to apply his design thinking to real-world challenges is exactly the kind of next step Rhees hopes for.
More than anything, the project taught Rhees to trust his perspective.
“Before I came into this program, I thought the Product and User Experience Design major was all about making things look pretty. But that is not true. The best designers are the ones who think differently and are not afraid to show it,” Rhees said.
This shift pushed him to move beyond aesthetics and start designing from a place of authenticity. “I am just beginning to scratch the surface of seeing what I can do,” he said. “Who knows how great of a designer I will be — I just want to keep practicing new ways of thinking, and showing that to the world.”
