The latest addition to the long running series of BMW art cars is this Z4. Unlike previous art cars where the machine was the canvas, the z4 you see above was actually used as the paint brush. When BMW unveiled the new 2009 Z4 at the Detroit Auto Show, they showed a video of artist Robin Rhodes creating a massive painting using a Z4 with its wheels dripping with red and green paint. For the last two weeks, the car and two of the painted panels have been on display with several of the earlier art cars at Grand Central Station, but they've now been moved into the Jacob Javits Center for the New York Auto Show. We were walking by this morning and thought you might enjoy some car art with your coffee. Check out photos of Z4 art car in our high-res gallery below.



Photos Copyright ©2009 Sam Abuelsamid / Weblogs, Inc.

BMW's world famous Art Cars have been an interesting project since their inception in 1975, attracting some of the world's most notable artists to leave their mark on the Bavarian automobiles. But while the collection of sixteen rolling works of art is permanently housed in BMW's museum in Munich, they've also traveled the world on various tours. The next one has already arrived in North America, with an exhibit opening today at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA).

Four of the project's most famous works, those of Andy Warhol, Frank Stella (pictured above), Roy Lichtenstein, and Robert Rauschenberg, will be on display, free of charge, in the BP Grand Entrance, from February 12-24, before they head off to New York's Grand Central Terminal from March 24-April 6, en route to three locations in Mexico thereafter.

The display is complemented by a behind-the-scenes video of the artists at work, which you can view along with the press release after the jump and the images in the gallery below, but if you're in the LA area, we'd suggest stopping by the LACMA to see these spectacular mobile works of art for yourself.

[Source: BMW]

Normally the models in BMW's art car line -- sixteen and counting -- get their body panels splashed up with designs by the who's who of the art world. BMW has decided to switch up the concept for a commercial for the new Z4; instead of the car being the canvas, the Z4 paints a canvas. Guided by modern artist Robin Rhode and a team of technicians, the Z4 is rigged up with machines that spray paint from the wheels, with everything captured on film by director Jake Scott, Ridley's son. The tire prints in all kinds of hues are laid down on an enormous white canvas, and the result is called "An Expression of Joy." You can check out the press release after the jump, the high-res gallery of images below, and Wallpaper magazine has behind the scenes video. If you like what you see, you might even be able to buy a slice of it in due time.

Artist William Burge has found a way to artfully reattach all of the little pieces that have fallen off his 1968 Volkswagen Beetle. The results are far more impressive than the Bug's original and once-ubiquitous countenance. Actually, we counted all 21,000 gigashards of metal, and that's more metal than a '68 Type 1 contained, and even the steady diet of replacement parts doesn't account for the amount of cold-rolled whatever comprising this bodyshell. The car's exhibition at the Essen Motor Show is apropos on a whole bunch of levels.

The gargoyle-themed Volkswagen will fit right in among the cathedrals and castles in the city, which is a future European Capital of Culture for 2010. Being a cultural hub, the intricate suit of armor worn by Burge's once-humble Beetle will be understood for the masterpiece that it is, and the painstaking metal work that went into the car will not be lost on the home of the Krupp Iron Works. There's not much information to be found about the car, which Burge has named "Phantoms," though it's been on display in Essen from November 26th, and will be at the Motor Show until the 9th of December. We're dying for details, particularly how it was put together? What's the interior look like? Is it still being pushed around by a 1500? Can I borrow it to discourage parking in front of my house? One of you astute commenters out there must have more information; please share!

[Source: Winding Road, Photo: Martin Meissner/AP]

Like many of us at Autoblog, we're pretty sure many of you are life-long computer geeks, which means, if you're old enough, somewhere in your house is a box (or boxes) of never-to-be-used-again floppy disks. Lara Weigand saw potential in those boxes of discarded data and decided her 1998 Honda Civic could use an exterior upgrade.

After painting hundreds of 3.5" and 4.25" floppies, Weigand glued them to the car, upgrading the Honda's storage capacity by at least half a gig. Such a valuable art car needs security, so we're glad to see she write-protected most of them.

Inside, Weigand's car features a dash plastered with sheets of punch cards and windows bordered by computer keys. On the wheels are processor chips and, fittingly, the door handles are covered with ESC keys.

The license plate, of course, reads DSKDRV. Write that down and if you ever see an improper driver taking the car through some bad sectors, it means someone has performed an illegal operation and should immediately be booted.

Check out TechEBlog for more photos.

Thanks for the tip, Mikkel!

[Sources: TecheBlog, Real Change News]

The Citroen 2CV is already a unique-looking car, with Citroen's distinct mid-century-modern style and flair. The French auto could be considered the opening salvo in a styling onslaught that led to such heights of style as the DS. A regular 2CV could be considered a piece of art, and Andy Saunders saw his French runabout as a canvas for further experimentation. Inspired by Pablo Picasso, pieces of the CV were sliced, diced, moved hither and yon, and repainted to mimic the artist's 1937 portrait of Dora Maar. The car is street legal in England, and we can only imagine the double takes it garners as it motors on down the street. Nighttime visibility must be rather entertaining, with both headlamps on one side of the car, and since turn signals received similar treatment, you'd best know your hand signals if you don't want this art car to suddenly become a collaborative effort, painted by someone else's vehicle-shaped brush. Saunders's car was at Goodwood this year, and Autoblog photographer extraodinaire Frank Filliponio snagged a shot of it. Just like Picasso's work, this Citroen will garner diametrically opposed reactions, but love it or hate it, it is a brilliant homage to an artistic movement that was fresh and vibrant when this humpbacked, bug-eyed voiture first saw the light of day.

[Source: Caradisiac]

Click above or follow the read link for a big gallery of pics of this outrageous Benz

Not sure who took these pics or what the mural depicts exactly, but this is one finely detailed M-Class. A true work of art if you're into REALLY custom paint jobs, this Mercedes from St. Petersburg (Russia, not Florida) is swathed in a mural of epic proportions. Medieval warriors adorn the flanks converging on a lightning-illuminated castle atop the hood. It's really pretty spectacular, as you can see from the gallery. Surely not the best use of a Mercedes-Benz M-Class, but to each his own. And as long as the owner likes it, what do our opinions matter?

Thanks for the tip, kerunt!

[Source: English Russia]

Click above for gallery

The term "art car" is closely associated with BMW, which has a history of letting famous artists use its vehicles as rolling mechanical canvases. And the cars are memorable, too -- the Andy Warhol M1 leaps to mind. Well, late last month, Audi decided to throw its hat in the ring as well by commissioning Brazilian Pop artist Romero Britto to turn an RS4 into an art car for the brand with the interlocking rings.

Britto responded with what you see above. A colorful painting of a woman adorns the hood of the muscle sedan and extends through the rest of its bodywork. It made its debut at the Art Chicago fair in the Windy City at the end of April, and will tour other locations in North America before ending its run in Miami Beach, where it will be auctioned for charity. Full details after the jump.

[Source: Audi]

Wow. We know that there are millions of people out there who can't stand having a stock vehicle parked in their garage. For these folks, a car isn't theirs until it has been personalized -- vanity plates, bumper stickers, cold air intakes, DUBS, whatever. But for a few people a car is a totally blank canvas. No mere add-ons will sate their hunger for self-expression. For these twisted artistic souls, nothing is off limits when it comes to modifications. And so we have the Art Cars. Outrageous paint jobs depicting just about every conceivable theme are the norm, but for some particularly gifted individuals, paint is so five years ago. Why paint a car when you can cover it with driftwood? Or apply thousands of cigarette butts to it instead? And although huge rear spoilers can be found tacked onto some of the most improbable vehicles in the real world, these cartists (car artists) like to add things like scale models, shells, buildings, and propellers to their rides. Sister blog Gadling recently attended an art car parade in Berkeley (we assume), and posted a few dozen pics for all to see. Click over and check them out for yourselves. We're rather partial to the child's racer bed complete with functioning racetracks, although that Isetta looks splendid as a bubble plane. And while we have no idea what it's supposed to be, the vehicle above certainly takes the cake in the more-is-more category.

[Source: Gadling]

As much as we love the roadgoing rallycars from Subaru and Mitsubishi, it's because of the way they drive, not necessarily for their handsome silhouettes. But beauty is, as they say, in the eye of the keyholder. Artist Benedict Radcliffe, head of experimental design at the Glasgow consultancy Stand, fashioned this wireframe outline of a Subaru WRX as an objet d'art. It sits outside the Paul Smith gallery on Albemarle Street in Glasgow, Scotland London, England (Thanks, Tony). And showing they have no love of fine art, the local constabulary has repeatedly ticketed the offending vehicle. Tickets are alternately written out to The Invisible Man or Wonder Woman, apparently. Well, it does take up a parking space, but come on guys. We remember seeing VW Beetles with intricate ironwork "bodies" in place of traditional panels, but this is a bit more extreme. It actually looks like a styling buck at first glance, but click here or here to see that it is indeed the real deal.

[Source: Winding Road]