The 2016 Art Basel in Miami Beach saw the debut of a new BMW art car by John Baldessari. The BMW M6 GTLM art car is not that impressive to look at to be honest, but then the form of art used here is conceptual which means the artist is relying heavily on the beholder’s share to complete his work. In other words, it’s all in the viewer’s mind!

So while this BMW M6 GTLM art car is somewhat different than all the other BMW art cars we’ve seen over the years in that it just doesn’t look artsy enough to normal people, it features one of the richest and most profound designs yet used on one of these cars. Baldessari is a minimalist, which explains why the livery he’s come up with is mostly white and only has some dots as its main highlights. That FAST printed on the side of the car is also a little on the nose for a 585-hp racing car, but that must be another one of the artist’s mind games.

“I have done only one work in my life involving a car before, and that was an image of a car. So for the BMW Art Car project, I entered uncharted territory, not just in terms of the subject, but also moving from two- to three-dimensional art. A challenge I did enjoy! The ideas all came at once: for instance, the red dot on the roof, so you can see it from above, FAST on one side and a picture of the car on the other side. I like the ambiguity, having two-dimension and three-dimension at the same time. Considering the car as an icon of contemporary life, my concept turned out playfully satirical, but it also highlights some of the trademark ideas that I use. So you can say, the BMW Art Car is definitely a typical Baldessari and the fastest artwork I ever created!” – John Baldessari