Pop art meets high-performance engineering in Dubai this April as BMW Group Middle East brings Andy Warhol’s iconic BMW M1 Art Car to this year’s Art Dubai. The exhibition will run from April 16 to 20.
Dubai will host Warhol’s M1 Art Car for the first time, marking a major milestone in the region’s cultural calendar. The event also celebrates the 50th anniversary of BMW’s legendary Art Car Collection. Organizers expect the showcase to become one of the year’s most anticipated cultural highlights, drawing art lovers and car enthusiasts alike.
Warhol painted the M1 prototype in just 28 minutes. He used six kilograms of paint and applied bold, expressive brushstrokes. Instead of relying on pop culture references—like his portraits of Marilyn Monroe or Campbell’s soup cans—Warhol chose to capture the car’s raw energy and motion through color and movement.
Designed by renowned automotive designer Giorgetto Giugiaro, the M1 competed in the 1979 24 Hours of Le Mans race. It placed sixth overall and second in its class, drivers Manfred Winkelhock, Hervé Poulain, and Marcel Mignot led the car in the race. Poulain, who initiated the BMW Art Car project, once compared Warhol’s painting process to a “live dance performance.”
Karim Christian Haririan, Managing Director of BMW Group Middle East, praised the significance of the exhibit. “Andy Warhol’s BMW M1 Art Car is a masterpiece,” he said. “It bridges the worlds of art and automotive excellence. Its showcase at Art Dubai reaffirms our commitment to creativity and cultural dialogue—locally and internationally.”
The exhibition is part of BMW’s global Art Car Tour. It celebrates five decades of collaboration between BMW and some of the world’s leading artists. Contributors to the collection include Alexander Calder, Roy Lichtenstein, Esther Mahlangu, and Jeff Koons. Each car in the series reflects the evolution of contemporary art and BMW’s long-standing dedication to cultural engagement.
