Peterson Museum’s New BMW Art Car Exhibit

‘Tis the season to go museum touring, and what better place to tour than the Peterson Museum in Los Angeles? The auto museum just had its grand reopening, and is now stocked heavy with 25 new exhibits, including one of my favorites: “BMW and The Art of the Automobile.” These are one-of-a-kind BMWs from across generations, handpainted by famous artists, which magically bring together two art forms into one.

Currently on display is the 1995 BMW 850i CSi done by David Hockney. Hockney is a progressive English painter who hugely influenced the pop art movement of the 1960s. His contemporary style allows the 8-Series ‘Rolling Sculpture’ beauty to shine. To me, it could be mistaken for racing livery. Albeit beautifully painted livery.

Also on display is the original BMW Art Car: the 1975 BMW 3.0 CSL done by Alexander Calder. Calder an American sculptor who pioneered the mobile. It really is the show pony of the exhibit with colors and style that actually set the tone for the entire BMW Art Car campaign.

The last car in the exhibit is a BMW Z4 which actually isn’t a BMW Art Car, but was instead used as a giant paintbrush in a recent artistic advertising strategy for the second generation model Z4. The project was captained by Robin Rhodes and can be watched in the impressive video below.

One of my favorites BMW Art Cars is the 2010 M3 GT2 painted by Jeff Koons. Boy does he capture the speed. Another one is the Andy Warhol BMW M1. Or the BMW Group 5 320i wide-body racecar done by Roy Lichtenstein. His pixelated design really emphasizes the body. Or the sparkling beauty of the 535i sedan painted by Matazo Kayama. Honestly, it’s hard to pick a favorite BMW Art Car, right?

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Via [Peterson Museum]