To celebrate the collection's 50th anniversary, BMW Welt in Munich is hosting the exhibition "BMW Art Cars—20 Artists, 50 Years Of Innovation. Reunited At BMW Welt." The event takes place from July 29 to August 31, 2026.
For the first time ever, all 20 BMW Art Cars—often referred to as "rolling sculptures"—are on display together in a single location. The exhibition officially opened on July 28, marking the ceremonial conclusion of the BMW Art Car World Tour, which traveled to more than 30 countries.
The story of the BMW Art Car Collection began in 1975, when race driver and art auctioneer Hervé Poulain teamed up with BMW motorsport chief Jochen Neerpasch to commission artist Alexander Calder to paint a BMW 3.0 CSL for the 24 Hours of Le Mans. What started as a one-off collaboration evolved into what Neerpasch described as the world's most significant collection of automotive art.
View Price on AmazonMany of the Art Cars are now among the most valuable vehicles in BMW's collection, blending the work of world-renowned artists—including Andy Warhol and Jeff Koons—with the company's rich history of design, engineering, and motorsport.
The lineup reads like a who's who of modern art. Calder launched the series in 1975 with the 3.0 CSL, followed by Frank Stella in 1976 with another CSL and Roy Lichtenstein's 320i Turbo in 1977. Andy Warhol transformed the iconic M1 in 1979, while Ernst Fuchs and Robert Rauschenberg each reimagined the 635 CSi in 1982 and 1986, respectively.
In 1989, Michael Nelson Jagamara and Ken Done each created their own interpretation of the BMW M3 Group A (E30). The collection continued to expand throughout the 1990s with a diverse range of artistic styles.
The new millennium brought another wave of standout entries. Olafur Eliasson used the hydrogen-powered BMW H2R prototype for an environmentally focused installation in 2007, followed by Jeff Koons' vibrant BMW M3 GT2 in 2010. More recently, John Baldessari created the BMW M6 GTLM in 2016, Cao Fei developed a digital concept based on the BMW M6 GT3 in 2017, and Julie Mehretu completed the latest Art Car in 2024, based on the BMW M Hybrid V8.
The exhibition is arranged in reverse chronological order, taking visitors from the newest Art Cars back to the beginning of the collection. Along the way, video installations and a detailed timeline provide historical context.
Source: motor1.com
