The new Hummer is an object that personifies the skeuomorph – something which appears to be functional but is in fact decorative. The underlying decorative nature is what in fact makes the Hummer the ultimate example of the SUV as pure kitsch.
The original Hummer was designed to traverse mud fields, ford rapids and scale mountainous terrain and as such was perhaps overkill for doing groceries in suburbia. It looked rugged and cool and in fact was very rugged, too rugged – i.e. bloody uncomfortable. The new Hummer sought to correct that – to create the oxymoron of comfortable and utilitarian, military chic for comfortable civilians, something as obviously stupid as the civilian comfort, white leather interior 4 wheel drive Lamborghini