BMWART Car Reloaded

Chinese multimedia artist Cao Fei takes the series into the 21st Century by going digital

Following the contributions by Jeff Koons and John Baldessari, Cao Fei is the youngest and first Chinese artist ever to create a BMW Art Car. By employing augmented and virtual reality, the internationally acclaimed Chinese multimedia artist addresses the future of mobility such as autonomous driving, airborne cars and digitalization. In the presence of Dr Ian Robertson, Member of the Board of Management of BMW AG, and hundreds of invited guests, the BMW Art Car #18 was revealed at the Minsheng Art Museum in Beijing on May 31.

Cao Fei’s work is a reflection on the speed of change in China, on tradition and future. With her BMW Art Car project, she delves into a trajectory spanning thousands of years, paying tribute to Asia’s ancient spiritual wisdom as it swiftly spreads out into the third millennium. The multimedia artist approached the BMW Art Car in a way typical for her artistic practice, building a parallel universe. The body of work consists of three different components: a video focusing on a time travelling spiritual practitioner, augmented reality features picturing colourful light particles, accessible via a dedicated app (App Store: keyword “BMW Art Car #18”), and the BMW M6 GT3 race car in its original carbon black. Paying tribute to the carbon fibre structure of the race car chassis, Cao Fei’s holistic use of a non-reflective black incorporates the car into the possibilities of the digital world.