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Fifty years after the first BMW Art Car, the German marque honoured its legacy at the 24 Hours of Le Mans with a living work of art Hypercar. The 2024 BMW M Hybrid V8 Art Car decorated by Julie Mehretu fused contemporary painting and endurance racing, transforming the track into an open-air gallery.

With a massive&nbsp;painting transposed onto the&nbsp;Hypercar, close collaboration between artist and engineers, and&nbsp;racing as the final stage of creation, in 2024 the&nbsp;BMW M Hybrid V8 Art Car decorated by Julie Mehretu&nbsp;embodied the carmaker&#39;s return to the highest level of endurance racing and carried on&nbsp;the remarkable history of BMW Art Cars at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

<h2>Born for the Track</h2>

In 2024, BMW celebrated a double anniversary: 50 years since the creation of the first Art Car, and the constructor&#39;s return to the top level of endurance racing via the Hypercar category at the&nbsp;24 Hours of Le Mans and in the FIA World Endurance&nbsp;Championship (FIA WEC). To mark the occasion, BMW entrusted the livery of the #20&nbsp;M Hybrid V8 to New York artist&nbsp;Julie Mehretu.&nbsp;Known for her monumental abstract paintings&nbsp;exhibited in major international institutions, Mehretu drew&nbsp;inspiration from her work Everywhen (2021-2023)&nbsp;which was presented in 2024 at the Palazzo Grassi in Venice before joining the MoMA permanent collection in NYC.

Her approach surpasses simple&nbsp;decoration. Julie Mehretu:&nbsp;To me, the car is a living painting. It was created for the circuit rather than the museum. As such, the&nbsp;BMW transformed into a moving canvas, a work of art&nbsp;whose final form could only be achieved after 24 hours of racing

Julie Mehretu imagined the&nbsp;M Hybrid V8 as an extension of her canvas. Mehretu: I saw the&nbsp;BMW M Hybrid V8&nbsp;in front of the finished painting in my studio and thought about what would happen if the car could move through the picture and merge with it. Now the BMW Art Car is another version&nbsp;of my painting and it looks like its grille has inhaled the paint.&nbsp;

The project was born from a close collaboration between the artist&nbsp;and BMW Motorsport designers&nbsp;and engineers. The challenge was&nbsp;to preserve&nbsp;artistic identity while respecting the aerodynamic and technical constraints of a Hypercar competing at the highest level of motorsport.

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<h2>Racing Activates the Design</h2>

At the&nbsp;92nd 24 Hours, the #20&nbsp;BMW M Hybrid V8 Art Car was shared by&nbsp;Sheldon van der Linde, Robin Frijns and&nbsp;Ren&eacute; Rast. The car qualified in P16 in&nbsp;03:26.223 and then navigated impactful setbacks early on.&nbsp;After suffering a punctured tyre in the first hour, the #20&nbsp;managed to claw its way into the top 10 before a violent collision with a&nbsp;stack of tyres at the Motul Chicane.&nbsp;Frijns returned the car to pit lane on three wheels resulting in a 24-minute delay.

After starting from last place in the Hypercar category, the #20 BMW&nbsp;finally returned to the track shortly before the finish&nbsp;after a long pit stop. It passed&nbsp;under the chequered flag&nbsp;having completed 96 laps, unclassified, but nonetheless praised for having seen through a project where the race itself was an crucial&nbsp;part of the endeavor.

The M Hybrid V8 Art Car continued&nbsp;BMW&#39;s&nbsp;unique tradition of melding&nbsp;art and motorsport at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Fifty years after the first Art Car entered the race, Julie Mehretu left her mark on the&nbsp;lineage&nbsp;while simultaneously propelling it into the present.

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To celebrate R&eacute;tromobile&#39;s 50th anniversary and the half-century mark of BMW Art Cars, the&nbsp;2026 show will present a <a href="http://www.24h-lemans.com/en/news/all-seven-le-mans-bmw-art-cars-on-display-at-retromobile-2026-in-paris-60209">special exhibition in France</a> from 28 January&nbsp;to 1 February. The seven BMW Art Cars seen at Le Mans will be brought together at the Paris Expo Porte de Versailles, including the #20&nbsp;BMW M Hybrid V8 fielded by&nbsp;BMW M Team WRT in the 2024&nbsp;24 Hours.

BMW Art Cars at the 24 Hours of Le Mans – M Hybrid V8 by Julie Mehretu: living canvas

In 2010, the BMW Art Car saga renewed the Pop Art theme with the help of Jeff Koons. Thanks to the American artist, the BMW M3 GT2 (entered in the LMGT2 class at the 24 Hours of Le Mans) displayed its power on the outside in a splash of visual energy. The spectacular work, ideally suited to racing, was an immediate hit with fans.

The BMW M3 GT2 by Jeff Koons entered in the LMGT2 class at the 2010 24 Hours of Le Mans was another flamboyant example of Pop Art in the Art Car series. Designed as an expression of speed, power and movement, it turned heads on track before its race was ended prematurely.

<h2>Designed for speed</h2>

No mention of BMW Art Cars could miss a reference to Jeff Koons. One of the most influential artists of his generation, the American was directly inspired by <a href="https://www.24h-lemans.com/en/news/bmw-art-cars-at-the-24-hours-of-le-mans-bmw-320i-turbo-the-pop-art-performer-60214" target="_blank">Roy Lichtenstein</a>&nbsp;and <a href="https://www.24h-lemans.com/en/news/bmw-art-cars-at-the-24-hours-of-le-mans-bmw-m1-andy-warhol-absolute-icon-60222" target="_blank">Andy Warhol</a>.His BMW M3 GT2 was the 17th Art Car, and completely in keeping with the spirit of the series. His design expressed a simple, universal message: speed.

With bright colours and vibrant lines with graphic fragments projected from back to front, this livery spelled raw energy. Even at a standstill, the car appeared ready to pounce. &ldquo;These race cars are like life, they are powerful and there is a lot of energy,&rdquo; said Koons. &quot;I want to let my ideas transcend with the car &ndash; it&rsquo;s really to connect with that power.&rdquo;

However, an&nbsp;impression of speed was not enough; the BMW M3 GT2 by Jeff Koons was intended for real pace on track. Koons worked alongside the BMW teams in Munich to ensure that the paintwork would not interfere with the car&rsquo;s aerodynamics and weight. Using 3-D computer-aided design models and digital simulations, he adapted his graphic design to the complex shapes of the bodywork. 
The artist was keen to experience racing speed for real, donning a helmet for tests at Sebring with Rahal Letterman Racing, enjoying laps in a classic BMW M1 as a passenger and driving a road-legal BMW M3. His intention was to get a feel for speed to inspire his design.

Decorating the Art Car was a challenge. Time was short &ndash; there were only two months between the first sketches and the premiere &ndash; so BMW opted for digital printing on car wrapping vinyl, protected by a double clear-coating. Hundreds of dynamic lines were carefully applied to the car and individual spare parts, a pattern of debris was added to the rear sides and two graphic rings on the rear represented supersonic acceleration.

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<h2>&ldquo;I would love to give it another chance and have it compete again.&rdquo;</h2>

The BMW M3 GT2 Art Car was unveiled on 1 June 2010 at the Centre Pompidou in Paris in front of 300 guests from all over the world. The venue was symbolic, Roy Lichtenstein having presented his Art Car there in 1977.

Entered for the 78th 24 Hours of Le Mans, the BMW M3 GT2 Art Car competed under the BMW Motorsport banner. Driving duties were entrusted to Dirk M&uuml;ller, Dirk Werner and Andy Priaulx. On track, it attracted immediate attention from spectators and journalists. But the race proved cruel and the car was not destined to cross the finish line. However, the #78 BMW M3 GT2 finished sixth, with J&ouml;rg M&uuml;ller, Augusto Farfus and Uwe Alzen at the wheel.

Despite the disappointment, Jeff Koons remembers the human element of the race. &ldquo;This race has been a very invigorating experience. It&rsquo;s amazing to see the commitment of all the people involved. The fans sleep in tents and stay awake for far more than 24 hours to celebrate this event. This has me really going, as I understand that it is something truly special for all the people to be here.&rdquo; 
Talking of the team: &ldquo;Yes, I would have loved to see the team win, but it wasn&rsquo;t to be. I know how committed they are and how much precision and care they put into their work. Of course we would have loved to see the car win. I would love to give it another chance and have it compete again.&rdquo;

To Koons, race cars are metaphors: &quot;These race cars are like gladiators out there. They are performing with full power and full impact.&rdquo;

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It may not have run the full course, nevertheless Jeff Koons&rsquo; BMW M3 GT2 remains one of the most emblematic Art Cars ever to have entered the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Its explosive look and performance-oriented design are the perfect embodiment of the BMW Art Car spirit: to strike up a conversation between contemporary art and endurance racing.

In a tribute to a half-century of fantastic liveries, this year&rsquo;s R&eacute;tromobile show (28 January to 1 February at Paris Expo Porte de Versailles) will be <a href="https://www.retromobile.com/en/news/bmw-art-car-world-tour">showcasing the seven 24 Hours of Le Mans BMW Art Cars</a> including the BMW M3 GT2 by Jeff Koons.

BMW Art Cars at the 24 Hours of Le Mans – BMW M3 GT2 by Jeff Koons: the colour of speed

In 1999, BMW Art Cars entered the prototypes era and American artist Jenny Holtzer transformed the BMW V12 LMR into a rolling political declaration. Through to striking slogans, chrome lettering and fluorescent overlays, the car itself became a message, and its speed a medium for reflection at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

The&nbsp;BMW V12 LMR Art Car decorated by Jenny Holzer, commissioned during prequalifying at the 1999&nbsp;24 Hours of Le&nbsp;Mans, represented a new&nbsp;form of expression in the&nbsp;BMW Art Car series. On the V12&nbsp;prototype (top speed of&nbsp;340 kph), the artiste inscribed famous phrases from the&nbsp;Truisms&nbsp;and&nbsp;Survival&nbsp;series, transforming the racing car into a textual and political work of art.

<h2>Jenny Holzer, When an Art Car delivers a&nbsp;message</h2>

Known for her works projected onto urban facades and monuments, Holzer brought a unique dimension to the BMW Art Car saga in 1999.&nbsp;Her weapon of expression: words. Her goal: to provoke thought. On the BMW V12 LMR&#39;s body, she applied statements in reflective chrome lettering&nbsp;and fluorescent overlays to challenge the viewer directly:

<ul>
	<li>Protect me from what I want</li>
	<li>Lack of charisma can be fatal</li>
	<li>The unattainable is invariably attractive</li>
	<li>Monomania is a prerequisite of success</li>
	<li>You are so complex you don&rsquo;t respond to danger</li>
</ul>

Working in a male-dominated field, she&nbsp;stood up for what she believed. Jenny Holzer:&nbsp;I thought it would be nice if women could participate in ways other than just standing around in bikinis.&nbsp;Thanks to&nbsp;Holzer, this Art Car became&nbsp;a work of art, a social message&nbsp;and a feminist manifesto all in one.

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<h2>BMW V12 LMR: Winning&nbsp;prototype at the 24 Hours of Le&nbsp;Mans</h2>

The&nbsp;BMW V12 LMR represented the peak of endurance racing&nbsp;technology at the end of the 1990s with a&nbsp;nearly 6-litre V12 engine, 580 hp&nbsp;and a top speed of 340 kph and was designed&nbsp;to conquer the 24 Hours of Le Mans. In 1999, three V12 LMRs were entered by BMW in prequalifying. The #16 Art Car decorated by Jenny Holzer&nbsp;was entrusted to Joachim Winkelhock and Tom Kristensen.

The car&#39;s performance did not disappoint, qualifying in seventh position with a time of&nbsp;3:34.493 and&nbsp;showing real potential for the big race. Unfortunately, BMW&#39;s sporting strategy required withdrawing the Art Car to focus&nbsp;its efforts on the two other official prototypes.

Though Holzer&#39;s&nbsp;BMW V12 LMR did not take the start in the 1999&nbsp;24 Hours, it left a lasting impression in Art Car history. Twist of fate:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.24h-lemans.com/en/news/24-hours-of-le-mans-bmws-astonishing-1999-v12-lmr-56547" target="_blank">the #15 BMW sister car</a>&nbsp;driven by&nbsp;Joachim Winkelhock, Pierluigi Martini and&nbsp;Yannick Dalmas won that&nbsp;67th running of the race.

Thanks to Holzer&#39;s V12 LMR, BMW&#39;s Art Cars saga entered a new chapter. Artistic expression&nbsp;was no longer limited&nbsp;to colour or form: it questioned and challenged, all at more than&nbsp;300 kph. Even without having participated the race, this Art Car remains one of the most conceptual in the history of Le Mans.

To celebrate R&eacute;tromobile&#39;s 50th anniversary and the half-century mark of BMW Art Cars, the&nbsp;2026 show will present a <a href="http://www.24h-lemans.com/en/news/all-seven-le-mans-bmw-art-cars-on-display-at-retromobile-2026-in-paris-60209">special exhibition in France</a> from 28 January&nbsp;to 1 February. The seven BMW Art Cars seen at&nbsp;the 24 Hours of Le Mans will be brought together at the Paris Expo Porte de Versailles, including none other than&nbsp;Jenny Holzer&#39;s BMW V12 LMR.

BMW Art Cars at the 24 Hours of Le Mans – BMW V12 LMR by Jenny Holzer: Art Car manifesto

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Short highlights of the second race of the 2025/26 Asian Le Mans Series in Malaysia on Sunday 14 December

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BMW Art Cars at the 24 Hours of Le Mans – M Hybrid V8 by Julie Mehretu: living canvas

BMW Art Cars at the 24 Hours of Le Mans – BMW M3 GT2 by Jeff Koons: the colour of speed

BMW Art Cars at the 24 Hours of Le Mans – BMW V12 LMR by Jenny Holzer: Art Car manifesto

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