50 Years of BMW Art Cars and 3 Series Honored in Special Exhibition

BMW Museum in Munich opens an exhibition for the 50th anniversary of BMW Art Cars and 3 Series, featuring works by Chia, Done, and Nelson.

Munich is about to host a rare dual celebration: the 50th anniversary of both the BMW Art Car Collection and the iconic BMW 3 Series. Starting June 17, 2025, the BMW Museum opens a special exhibition that unites automotive engineering with visual art, running until February 1, 2026. The event is a central stop of the BMW Art Car World Tour, the most extensive exhibition project in the collection’s history.

The story began in 1975 at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, when Alexander Calder’s painted BMW 3.0 CSL made its racing debut. What began as a collaboration between French racing driver and art lover Hervé Poulain and BMW’s motorsport chief Jochen Neerpasch quickly grew into an international phenomenon. Over five decades, artists like Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein, David Hockney, and Julie Mehretu turned BMW models into moving canvases.

This Munich showcase focuses on three Art Cars based on the BMW 3 Series. In 1989, Australian artist Ken Done transformed a BMW M3 Group A with vibrant brushwork, evoking the speed and spirit of racing. His compatriot Michael Jagamara Nelson applied Aboriginal dot painting techniques to another M3 Group A, embedding Dreaming stories and ancestral symbolism into its lines. Italian painter Sandro Chia took the 1992 M3 GTR and covered it with expressive human faces, exploring the deep connection between driver and machine.

While the BMW Art Cars are often on international display, the BMW Museum remains their spiritual home. The current exhibition offers not just aesthetics, but a broader context—technical innovation, artistic commentary, and cultural relevance. Visitors can trace the 3 Series’ evolution from its 1975 debut to its latest incarnations, reaffirming its legacy as the ultimate driving machine.

The World Tour continues simultaneously, with stops this year in Stockholm, Bratislava, Basel, and beyond. Each venue underscores the fusion of technology and creativity that defines the Art Car tradition, provoking reflection while delighting the senses.

For those who can’t attend in person, the official BMW Art Car website offers a comprehensive look at all 20 vehicles in the collection. But there’s something uniquely powerful about seeing them in the metal—where oil, paint, and steel meet in the quiet reverberations of speed and imagination.