A great car is a work of art. But sometimes, an extra touch from someone outside the engineering and design departments can make it something even better.
Since 1975, BMW has been working with prominent artists to transform its vehicles into masterpieces. The program, thought up by French auctioneer and racing driver Hervé Poulain, has featured artists like Andy Warhol, Alexander Calder, Frank Stella, and Roy Lichtenstein.
The process was initiated with functional, competitive racing cars---Poulain wanted to meld the two things he loved, art and racing---but it evolved to encompass street cars. When done, each machine/art work is owned by BMW, displayed regularly, and treated with utmost care.
To celebrate 40 years of the art car program, BMW is exhibiting the vehicles around the world, in places like New York, Shanghai, Miami, Hong Kong, and Lake Como, Italy. If you have any interest in art or racing, go see them, as soon as you can. (Many of the vehicles in question don't get out much.)
In the grand scheme of things, the Art Cars haven't accomplished much. You could trot out the usual stuff about "moving art in the right direction," or "bridging two worlds," but really, they exist because they're cool---and sometimes, that's enough. They're proof that neat stuff can occasionally trump bureaucracy, corporate procedure, humanity's to drive censor itself for public consumption.
Seventeen art cars have been built. And while art is subjective, if you ask us, there isn't a bad one in this whole bunch. Click through the gallery above for our 11 favorites.
