The BMW Art Car Project was created by Hervé Poulain, a French racecar driver, in 1975 and still continues to this day. The project allows an artist to use a car as a canvas, giving leading artists a unique opportunity to work with an unconventional surface while propelling BMW into the world of fine art. The first art car was created by Alexander Calder in 1975, who painted a BMW 3.0 CSL with intense primary colors. A fantastic first choice, considering Calder’s love of combining art and technology, the program has grown to include some of the biggest names in art. Since the first artistic foray into the meeting of fine art and automobiles, BMW cars have been painted by Roy Lichtenstein, Andy Warhol, Robert Rauschenberg, Jenny Holzer, Jeff Koons, and Frank Stella.

Frank Stella’s BMW Art Car

Frank Stella created his BMW Art Car in 1976. This car, the second ever BMW Art Car, was created only one year after Calder’s (though Stella’s was created at the behest of the driver Peter Gregg outside of the official BMW art car program). Also a BMW 3.0 CSL, Stella approached the design as if it were a “blueprint transferred to the bodywork.” Stella’s car features a black and white grid design reminiscent of oversized graph paper. That rigid design is applied to the whole body of the car and emphasizes the car’s form. Cutting through the grid pattern are thick, sweeping black lines that outline large overlapping geometric shapes that bring further attention to the car’s movement. The design emphasizes precision and its largely monochromatic palette allows the car’s form and contours to be the center of attention.

Stella’s BMW raced in 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1976 shortly after its completion. A wonderful project for the artist, who was an avid motor racing fan, Stella’s art car is an extraordinary addition to the lineage of BMW art cars.