Andy Warhol’s BMW M1 Showcased at Art Dubai 2025 for the First Time

BMW brings Warhol’s M1 Art Car to Art Dubai 2025 as part of its global Art Car World Tour marking the project’s 50th anniversary.

BMW's iconic M1 Art Car by Andy Warhol made its Middle Eastern debut at Art Dubai 2025, becoming one of the fair's standout highlights. Held at Madinat Jumeirah from April 18 to 20, with VIP previews on the 16th and 17th, the exhibition marks a major stop on the BMW Art Car World Tour celebrating the 50th anniversary of the pioneering “rolling sculpture” series.

As a longstanding partner of Art Dubai—the most significant international art fair in the Middle East—BMW reinforces its cultural commitment by showcasing Warhol’s M1 in a region where the intersection of art, design, and innovation is rapidly gaining momentum. The fair itself brings together more than 120 galleries from over 40 countries, with a focus on both global names and underrepresented regions.

Painted by Andy Warhol in 1979 in just 28 minutes, the BMW M1 raced in the 24 Hours of Le Mans and has since become one of the collection’s most celebrated works. Unlike previous artists, Warhol painted the full-scale car directly, seeking to depict the sensation of speed with expressive, blurred strokes of color.

To accompany the exhibition, BMW hosted a panel discussion titled “Driven by Art: Are Commissions and Co-creations the Future?” on April 17. Moderated by Prof. Dr. Thomas Girst, the talk featured Azu Nwagbogu, Hans Ulrich Obrist, and Dr. Stephanie Rosenthal. The panel examined the growing phenomenon of co-creation in contemporary art and its potential to foster cross-disciplinary and cross-cultural collaboration through institutional and corporate engagement.

The arrival of Warhol’s Art Car at Art Dubai was more than a symbolic gesture—it underlined the fair’s evolving role as a global platform for cultural exchange. For the regional art scene, it signals continued international interest and increasing integration into the global art discourse.

Source: bmwgroup.com