Culture.

Since 1975, prominent artists from around the world have designed BMW automobiles to represent their times, all making extremely different artistic statements. The 17 exhibits created for the Art Car Collection until now include works by well-known artists such as Alexander Calder, Frank Stella, Roy Lichtenstein, Andy Warhol, A.R. Penck, David Hockney, Jenny Holzer and Olafur Eliasson. BMW Art Cars reflect the cultural and historical development of art, design, and technology and attract interest at numerous museums and galleries throughout the world, including the Centre Pompidou in Paris, the Mori Art Museum in Tokyo, the Contemporary Art Centre in Warsaw and the Guggenheim Museum New York, to name just a few. 

It was originally French racing driver Hervé Poulain who had the idea of allowing an artist free rein with an automobile. Poulain commissioned American artist Alexander Calder to paint his BMW racing car in the early 70's. This was the initial spark which led BMW to establish the Art Car Collection. In the early years of the project, it was mainly racing cars that were transformed into artistic objects – some even started in the famous 24-hour Le Mans race. Later, the Art Car Collection was extended to include series-produced vehicles. 

The first comprehensive publication on BMW Art Cars published by Hatje Cantz in early 2014 traces the development of these “rolling sculptures” since 1975.

The third, extended edition of the “BMW Art Guide by Independent Collectors” provides an international overview of 236 publicly accessible private collections. Concise portraits of each collection, replete with colour illustrations, take the reader to 39 different countries and through areas sometimes quite off the beaten path. In addition to collections previously inaccessible to the general public, the extended edition now also includes sculpture parks and artists’ quarters in individual cities.

Collectors, gallerists, artists, and journalists assisted with the extensive research for this new standard work, released in English and German language by the art-book publisher Hatje Cantz. There is no comparable list of international private collections – some of which are opening their doors to art lovers and connoisseurs for the first time – online or in book form. 

The BMW Art Guide by Independent Collectors is the first joint publication by BMW and Independent Collectors, a partnership that began in 2009.

The BMW Art Journey is a new global art initiative launched by BMW and Art Basel in 2015 to promote young international artists. Like a mobile studio, the BMW Art Journey award enables selected artists to take a journey of creative discovery to a destination of their choosing – to conduct research, make contacts and create new works. 

All artists showing in Art Basel's new sectors “Positions” and “Discoveries” in Miami Beach and Hong Kong are eligible to apply for the BMW Art Journey, which will be awarded twice a year to one artist at each location. Two international expert juries, one for Hong Kong and one for Miami Beach, will select a shortlist of three artists per sector and invite them to submit proposals for a journey. One of them will get the chance to undertake the BMW Art Journey. The artist selected from the “Discoveries” sector of Art Basel's show in Hong Kong, held in March 2015, is Sampson Young. The artist selected from the “Positions” sector of Art Basel in Miami Beach will be announced in early 2016.

The jury members for the BMW Art Journey include Richard Armstrong (Director, Guggenheim Museum, New York), Juan Gaítan (curator based in Mexico City), Massimiliano Gioni (Artistic Director, New Museum, New York City), Gabriele Horn (Director, KW Institute for Contemporary Art, Berlin), Claire Hsu (Director, Asia Art Archive, Hong Kong), Matthias Mühling (Director, Lenbachhaus, Munich), Victoria Noorthoorn (Director, Museu de Arte Moderna, Buenos Aires) and Bisi Silva (Artistic Director, Centre for Contemporary Art, Lagos). 

The journeys can be followed in real-time through digital and social media and publications.

PARTNER: Art Basel 

Art Basel hosts the world's premier art shows for modern and contemporary works in Basel, Miami Beach, and Hong Kong. Defined by its host city and region, each show is unique, which is reflected in the participating galleries, artworks presented and the content of parallel programming produced in collaboration with local institutions.  In addition to ambitious stands featuring leading galleries from around the world, each show's singular exhibition sectors spotlight the latest developments in the visual arts, offering visitors new ideas, new inspiration and new contacts in the art world.

BMW Tate Live is a long-term partnership between BMW and Tate geared towards innovative performances, interdisciplinary art and curation of the digital space. The jointly developed format explores the diverse ways in which artists approach the topic of live performance in the 21st century.  The programme offers live internet broadcasts, performances in museum galleries, seminars and workshops.  BMW Tate Live aims to reach an international audience through new forms of art, addressing audiences’ changing needs, tastes and interests in art. The event series creates a new space for collaboration and a programme that encompasses performance, film, sound, installations and new ways of learning – areas where artists can take greater risks and experiment freely.

BMW maintains long-term and sustainable partnerships with the most important and prestigious art fairs around the world. In doing so BMW is by no means interested in mere logo placement. We provide VIP shuttle service and, together with our partners, develop new formats that promote exchange of ideas and thoughts between art fairs and their visitors. BMW supports Art Basel in Switzerland, Miami Beach and Hong Kong, the Frieze Art Fair  in London and Frieze Masters, the Frieze New York, Paris Photo – and its American derivative Paris Photo LA, the TEFAF in the Netherlands, the Gallery Weekend Berlin, the KIAF – Korea International Art Fair in Seoul, the Berlin Biennale and the Kochi-Muziris Biennale in India. MINI is also involved with the abc – art berlin contemporary.

The Preis der Nationalgalerie is facilitated by the Association of Friends of the National Gallery. Made possible by civic commitment, it has established itself in recent years as the most significant national award for contemporary art. In addition, a public’s choice award has also been presented since 2005.

Since 2011, the National Gallery has also presented an award for young film artists, in collaboration with the German Film Academy. Presented every two years at the Hamburger Bahnhof – Berlin's museum for contemporary art – the award focuses
on young, significant artists of our time. Each of the two winners receives a carefully designed solo show in one of the houses of the National Gallery, including a special catalogue. International artists currently working in Germany below the age of 40 are eligible. 

“The Preis der Nationalgalerie has established itself in recent years as the most significant national award for contemporary art. Even the list of artists who were nominated but did not receive the prize reads like a “who’s who” of the international art scene. We are delighted to have accompanied this development as a long-standing partner,” commented Maximilian Schöberl, Senior Vice President Corporate and Intergovernmental Affairs, BMW Group.