BMW Celebrates 50 Years of Art Cars with North American Tour, Showcasing Iconic Works by Warhol and Mehretu

JAKARTA - For half a century, the BMW Art Car program has served as a unique platform for global artists to transform cars into walking works of art. To celebrate its golden anniversary, two of the most iconic art cars by American artists Andy Warhol and Julie Mehretu will embark on a North American tour.

The exhibition at Pebble Beach, part of Monterey Car Week, will be a rare opportunity for art and automotive enthusiasts to see these two masterpieces. Afterward, the two cars will continue their journey. Mehretu's car will be displayed at the exclusive The Bridge event in Bridgehampton, New York, on September 13, 2025, alongside a McLaren Artura GT4 designed by artist Mickalene Thomas.

Citing information from the BMW Group website today, August 15, their first stop will be the prestigious Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance in the United States this weekend.

Warhol M1: An Iconic Pop Art Symbol

Andy Warhol's art car, a 1979 BMW M1 Group 4, is known as one of his most influential. In just 28 minutes, Warhol painted the race car with spontaneous strokes of color and texture, making it an unforgettable symbol of the Pop Art movement. The car even competed in the 1979 24 Hours of Le Mans race.

Mehretu M Hybrid V8: An Expression of Modern Art

Newest work in this collection, BMW M Hybrid V8 #20 of 2024, is designed by Julie Mehretu, one of the famous artist in his generation. His work full with mixed media, printed, and paintings expressing social and political situation. This car firstly introduced in Paris on 2024 May and Le Mans race a month later, before finally carried out the debut in North America.