• Width:
  C:15 1/4" F:25 1/2" Inches
• Height:
  C:9 3/4" F:33 1/2" Inches
• Period:
  20th Century
• Origin:
  America
• Material:
  Miscellaneous
• Artist:
  Other

Andy Warhol
1928-1987 · American

1978 BMW 320i Art Car Maquette
Acrylic paint on fiberglass BMW 320i maquette with spun aluminum wheels

Signed "W" isolated from paint design on front bumper, rear bumper and window

Car: 1/5 scale, or 15 ¼" wide x 37 ½" length x 9 ¾" high
Base: 24" wide x 2 3/4" deep x 46" length

Print:
1978 BMW 320i Art Car Floral Design Painting

Acrylic on black Pantone Latracolor paper

Unsigned, verso stamp of Andy Warhol Authentication Board, Inc.

Frame: 33 ½" high x 25 ½" wide

Accompanied by a certificate from the Andy Warhol Art Authentication Board, Inc., Letter signed by Sally King-Nero, dated October 17, 2003, Identification number A108.0310. Photograph of Art Car stamped and numbered verso by The Andy Warhol Art Authentication Board, Inc.

"Andy Warhol's opposition to the stereotype decor seen on modern race cars inspired the artist to defy the status quo. To transcend the myth of the manly race car driver, he opted to use the poetic sweetness of mechanically produced roll-on flowers. He sought to assimilate the organic and the mechanical into a harmonious work of art. To replicate the design on a bathroom wall or on the shell of a race car was the embellishment he adopted. Not only is it a race car painted with flowers, it is a work of art as valuable as if it were framed in a museum. The fragmented roll on flower patterns give insight into his genius for adaptation. He hoped the supporters of LeMans would 'read meaning into' the wily animated Pop-Art flower motif and embrace his scintillating pink on black floral design."
-- Critique by LeMans driver, Herve Pulain, on Andy Warhol's floral art car design 

This one-of-a-kind maquette, or scale model, of a 1978 BMW 320i was painted by legendary Pop artist Andy Warhol. Crafted of fiberglass with spun aluminum wheels by the Munich BMW race team, it was made especially to scale for Warhol as part of the 24 Hours of LeMans, the world's oldest endurance car race. Warhol actually painted two BMW art cars, the 320i and the 1979 M1, but this is the only BMW art car in private hands. Accompanied by the rolled painting that Warhol created just before, this car is a truly incredible find.

One of two cars that Warhol created for LeMans, this is a true Warhol masterpiece. Only recently rediscovered among Warhol's effects, this fiberglass car features a coat of black acrylic paint that provides the perfect canvas for the bright pink floral pattern that has been rolled onto its surface. According to Warhol's diary entries about creating this car, Warhol's close friend, art critic and curator David Whitney suggested that he buy "one of those paint rollers that you roll flower designs on a wall with," to use for his design. The result is a striking design that provokes questions about what is expected, representations of power, marketing, and even traditional illustrations of the masculine and the feminine. 

Warhol experimented first with the paint roller and repeating flower design in straight vertical lines on black Letracolor paper with pink acrylic paint. When he applied the same floral design on the car he broke the pattern of the design on the roller to create innovative new designs by manipulating the face of the roller at various angles and directions to create additional flower patterns. He became so proficient with the roller that he was able to isolate the letter 'W' from the various flower motifs, then applied this creative signature on the front and rear bumpers and on the rear window. On the second, car, Warhol created a more recognizable, racing-oriented design, a choice that would make this car even more exceptional and desirable.

Warhol was one of several well-known artists asked to create art cars for Lemans from 1975 to 1999, including, Alexander Calder, the first in 1975, Frank Stella, Roy Lichtenstein, Robert Rauschenberg, and David Hockney. As part of this commission, the artists were asked to recreate their scintillating designs on the actual racing cars before each race, at which time their working models became the property of BMW. Warhol was commissioned to design the 1978 BMW 320i racecar. However, the car was withdrawn before the Le Mans race because of mechanical difficulty, and BMW re-commissioned Warhol to create a new design for the M1 Art Car in 1979. Today, the fifteen other Art Car maquettes, including Andy Warhol's 1979 M1 Art Car, are on display at the BMW Museum in Munich, Germany. When BMW withdrew the 1978 Le Mans racecar, Warhol's 320i maquette became the only BMW art car in private hands.

One of the most famous artists, well-beyond his oft-quoted "15 minutes," Andy Warhol made pop culture his medium. One of the most iconic artists in history, he was known for making art his "brand" and raising questions about originality and reproduction, as well as the nature of celebrity, persona and the outward image. Born Andrej Varhola, Jr. in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1928, Warhol first made a name for himself as a commercial artist, quickly becoming one of the most successful illustrators of his time. He won numerous awards for his work from the Art Directors Club and the American Institute of Graphic Arts, and his clients included Tiffany & Co., The New York Times, Harper's Bazaar, Vogue, NBC, and others. It was in the late 1950s that he focused more of his attention on his painting.

 Warhol's first Pop paintings, based on comics and ads, made in 1961, and a series of Campbell's Soup Cans painted in 1962, created a sensation in the art world and launched him as a celebrity. His iconic studio, painted silver and known as the Factory, became the place to be in New York. Surrounding himself with an ever-rotating group of hipsters and starlets like The Rolling Stones, The Velvet Underground and Edie Sedgwick, he also extended his talents into other fields such as film, publishing, writing, television, and music. Except for a brief period in the mid-1960s, he would continue to paint until the end of his life. He was a mentor and inspiration to such artists as Jean-Michel Basquiat, and by the time of his death, he was one of the most prolific and well-known artists the world had ever seen.

Car and print executed April 8-18, 1978

 Provenance:
1978, Andy Warhol received commission from BMW to execute design for 1978 BMW 320i Art Car for Le Mans race.
n.d. BMW Auction, Munich Germany;
1979, Herve Pulain, Avenue de Breteuil, Paris;
1988, Charles Schalebaum, Ridge Wood, New Jersey;
1997, Bubbling Springs Realty Trust, Sarasota, Florida;
2004, Private collection, USA Exhibited:
1981 Paris, B.M.W. aux 24 heures du Mans de 1939-1980;
1984 Abbaye de l'Epau, France, June-October, 24 Heures de Course, Le Mans, 1923-1983;
1985 Musee de la Villette, Paris, Grands Jeux Musee d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris, September, L'Art, le Style et l'Auto;
1986 Munich, August-October, Das Automobil in der Kunst 1886-1986, cat. #238 Literature:
Connaissance des Arts, November 1978, number 321, illustrated, page 105;
Maison et Jardin, March 1980, pages 81-85, illustrated page 81;
Poulain, Herve, "Les Pop Cars d'Andy Warhol," Automobiles Classiques-Paris, May 1987, page 76;
The Andy Warhol Dairies, 1989, Pat Hackett, ed., pages 122, 124, 127 and 136.