The BMW Art Car collection has recently added a new entry – this time, the designer is none other than the great American master of conceptual art, John Baldessari. Since 1975, a total of 17 international artists have been asked to create BMW Art Cars, utilizing as their ‘base’ one of BMW’s contemporary automobiles.
The BMW Art Car collection has recently added a new entry – this time, the designer is none other than the great American master of conceptual art, John Baldessari. Since 1975, a total of 17 international artists have been asked to create BMW Art Cars, utilizing as their ‘base’ one of BMW’s contemporary automobiles. The history of the BMW Art Cars collection started when race car driver and art lover Hervé Poulain asked his friend Alexander Calder to design him a car. The result turned out to be an instant favorite with the spectators at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Each different edition of Art Cars has been designed by renowned artists such as Frank Stella, Roy Lichtenstein, Andy Warhol, Robert Rauschenberg and David Hockney.
In his own words, Baldessari describes his initial thoughts for this project, and the elements he has incorporated into this unique design: "I have done only one work in my life involving a car before, and that was an image of a car. So for the BMW Art Car project, I entered uncharted territory, not just in terms of the subject, but also moving from two- to three-dimensional art. A challenge I did enjoy!” He continues: “The ideas all came at once: for instance, the red dot on the roof, so you can see it from above, FAST on one side and a picture of the car on the other side. I like the ambiguity, having two-dimension and three-dimension at the same time. Considering the car as an icon of contemporary life, my concept turned out playfully satirical, but it also highlights some of the trademark ideas that I use. So you can say, the BMW Art Car is definitely a typical Baldessari and the fastest artwork I ever created!”
Being much more than just a “rolling sculpture”, Baldessari’s Art Car will have to prove itself on the race track of Rolex 24 at DAYTONA on January 28 and 29, 2017.
Image above: Renowned American contemporary artist John Baldessari with the 19th BMW Art Car in Miami.
The newest BMW Art Car made its world premiere at Art Basel in Miami Beach on Wednesday, November 30, 2016.
Photography by Chris Tedesco. © BMW AG. 11/2016
Anna Melnykova, "Palace of Labor (palats praci), architector I. Pretro, 1916", shot with analog Canon camera, 35 mm Fuji film in March 2022.
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