BMW Art Car World Tour in Türkiye | Calder & Mehretu at CI 2025

BMW Art Car World Tour Arrives in Türkiye: Contemporary Istanbul Celebrates 20 Years with Iconic BMW Art Cars

Istanbul, Türkiye – September 2025 – Contemporary Istanbul, the country’s leading international art fair, is celebrating its 20th anniversary in spectacular fashion by hosting two icons of the BMW Art Car Collection. From 24–28 September 2025, visitors to Tersane Istanbul will not only experience one of the most important cultural gatherings in the region but also witness a milestone in the art-meets-automotive world: the display of Alexander Calder’s legendary BMW 3.0 CSL and Julie Mehretu’s futuristic BMW M Hybrid V8.

This special showcase marks Türkiye’s first-ever presentation of BMW Art Cars, part of the BMW Art Car World Tour, which commemorates the 50th anniversary of the collection. With stops planned across five continents through 2026, the tour highlights BMW’s ongoing commitment to cultural dialogue that bridges art, design, and innovation.

A Historic Beginning: Calder’s 1975 BMW 3.0 CSL

The Art Car story began in 1975 when French racing driver and art dealer Hervé Poulain asked his friend, American artist Alexander Calder, to transform a BMW 3.0 CSL into a rolling canvas. Brightly patterned in red, yellow, blue, and white, the car not only dazzled visually but also competed at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, instantly winning the public’s affection.

Calder, a pioneer of Classical Modernism, was best known for his mobiles and monumental metal sculptures. With the BMW 3.0 CSL, he redefined the boundary between functional engineering and fine art, setting the stage for five decades of creativity that followed.

A Contemporary Vision: Mehretu’s BMW M Hybrid V8

Fast forward to 2024, when Ethiopian-born, New York-based artist Julie Mehretu unveiled the 20th BMW Art Car at the Centre Pompidou in Paris. Using BMW’s M Hybrid V8 race car as her canvas, she brought her dynamic language of layered abstractions into three dimensions. Inspired by her monumental painting Everywhen (2021–2023), Mehretu’s design fuses digital photography, neon veils, and bold black markings to create an impression of movement and energy.

Her Art Car debuted on the racetrack at Le Mans 2024, echoing Calder’s original legacy while reimagining it for a new era of motorsport and contemporary art.

BMW Art Car World Tour: Connecting Cultures

The BMW Art Car World Tour is far more than a celebration of automotive design—it’s a global cultural statement. From Art Basel Hong Kong to Le Mans Classic in France, the Zoute Grand Prix in Belgium, Shanghai Motor Show, and Italy’s Concorso d’Eleganza, the tour showcases all 20 Art Cars. Each stop reinforces BMW’s reputation for supporting art, music, film, and design across more than 100 cultural initiatives worldwide.

In Istanbul, the cars will be presented in the BMW Lounge at Contemporary Istanbul, accompanied by a BMW Art Talk led by Thomas Girst, Head of BMW Group Cultural Engagement, offering audiences unique insights into the stories behind these rolling sculptures.

Contemporary Istanbul 2025: A Cultural Milestone

Celebrating its 20th edition, Contemporary Istanbul reflects two decades of growth as a global hub for art and dialogue. This year’s fair deepens its partnerships with institutions such as the UBS Digital Art Museum (Hamburg) and the Sigg Art Foundation (Le Castellet), reinforcing its international standing.

The 2025 edition also features Focus America, a curated program highlighting the contemporary art scene in the United States, with major US museum leaders joining panels and exhibitions. Meanwhile, CIF Dialogues 2025, under the theme “Dispersing Coordinates: Istanbul and the Shifting Map of Art”, will explore Istanbul’s evolving role in the global art landscape.

Art, Cars, and Culture Intertwined

With Calder’s historic BMW 3.0 CSL and Mehretu’s radical BMW M Hybrid V8 sharing the spotlight, the Istanbul stop of the Art Car World Tour symbolizes both heritage and innovation. The exhibition connects half a century of artistic vision with the energy of Türkiye’s most dynamic art fair, bridging continents and cultures.

As Contemporary Istanbul marks its 20th anniversary, the BMW Art Car Collection celebrates its 50th—a perfect convergence of milestones that place Istanbul firmly at the crossroads of global art and design.

???? Whether you are an art enthusiast, a motorsport fan, or simply someone fascinated by the blend of creativity and engineering, the BMW Art Car showcase at Contemporary Istanbul 2025 is an event not to be missed.