Helene Rother

Born in 1908, in Leipzig, Germany, Helene Rother was the first known female automotive interior designer. She began her work in Paris where she designed high-end jewelry.  After fleeing Nazi-occupied Paris in 1941, she settled in New York where she temporarily worked as an illustrator for Marvel Comics. Later, she would be hired by General Motors, and move to Detroit, Michigan.

At General Motors, Rother began interior automotive design. In 1947, she established her own studio and business known as Helene Rother Associates. Rother’s direct approach to addressing and advocating for women in the industry was mentioned in The SAE Journal (a publication by the Society of Automotive Engineers) as being one whose “efforts have encompassed items ranging from jewelry and accessories to several of today’s automobiles.”

In 2020, Helene Rother was posthumously inducted into the Automotive Hall of Fame.