Culture and connectivity: BMW’s 18th Art Car

BMW’s latest Art Car instalment is set to make its debut in the summer of 2017, and will go on to take part in a major race in Asia later that year. The luxury marque’s 18th Art Car is the first to be designed by a Chinese artist, and will showcase emerging trends in the future of mobility such as autonomous driving and intelligent connectivity.

Cao Fei, the first Chinese artist to be commissioned by BMW to design an Art Car, is considered to be one of the most important young artists currently working in and around China, and has been an active part of the international art scene for almost 20 years. She was the unanimous choice of the BMW Art Car jury, which consisted of twelve esteemed museum directors and curators, to design the 18th car.

Based on the BMW M6 GT3, Cao Fei’s car is described as a ‘rolling sculpture’, and is an inspired fusion of race-car speed and the tumultuous changes of Chinese society over the past decades. Fei is particularly interested in representing the convergence of the virtual world with the real one.

“The car is key to understanding the changes occurring in contemporary Chinese society. The rapid speed of a car and the rapid changes taking place in Chinese society are my inspirations for creating the 18th BMW Art Car. But my BMW Art Car will adopt an expressive form completely different from previous ones. It will be an interpretation of the century’s theme, namely that we enter ‘a landscape of no-man’s land’, e.g. autonomous cars and aircrafts and virtual reality,” said Cao Fei.

Thomas Girst, Head of BMW Group Cultural Engagement, mentioned the importance of the heritage and innovations showcased in the BMW Art Cars: “Art is a mirror that can reflect the future into today’s reality. The BMW Group believe that sustainability, connectivity and automated driving are the trends for future individual mobility. We are pleased to see that the artists’ ideas for the 18th BMW Art Car regarding future cars, society and humankind is in line with BMW’s vision for future mobility.”

BMW cars are constantly evolving to reflect changing society and improving technology, as can be seen in Lancaster BMW Milton Keynes full range of stunning BMW cars. From the sleek and compact 1 Series to the sporty and suave M Series, and the future-facing i8, BMW reflect the true values of mobility in every vehicle.