Munich/Los Angeles. The BMW Group presents a fusion
of art and innovation at the Frieze Los Angeles art fair in the form
of the BMW i5 Flow NOSTOKANA. The one-of-a-kind vehicle combines
colour-change technology developed by BMW with the artistic language
of South African artist Esther Mahlangu. The designer piece, with
sections of attached film that can be electronically animated,
embodies the latest development in colour-change technology for
vehicle surfaces in cooperation with E Ink. The BMW i5 Flow NOSTOKANA
celebrates its world premiere at the fair opening on 29 February. The
contemporary tribute recalls the BMW Art Car designed by Mahlangu in
1991. “The BMW i5 Flow NOSTOKANA honours the history of the BMW brand
and continues the story of our global cultural engagement in a unique
way. It combines art and design through progressive technology. Here,
technology itself becomes art,” says Adrian van Hooydonk, head of BMW
Group Design.
In 1991, Mahlangu designed the 12th BMW Art Car, based on a BMW
525i – becoming the first woman and first African artist to do so.
“Her art inspired me years ago, back when the concept of colour change
on a car was just an idea in my head,” says Stella Clarke, Research
Engineer Open Innovations at the BMW Group. „Now, being able to
realise this idea, and work with Esther Mahlangu, is absolutely
surreal.” The 88-year-old artist’s signature colours and geometric
patterns are perfect for bringing the innovative Flow technology to
life in the BMW i5. The versatility of the electrophoretic colour
changes makes the fully-electric sedan a dynamic work of art. “It is
fascinating to me to see how modern technology can expand my art and
make it accessible to a completely new audience,” says Mahlangu.
Mahlangu’s art meets cutting-edge technology.
In
the BMW i5 Flow NOSTOKANA, which is named after Mahlangu’s first son,
sections of film that can be electronically animated are applied, with
two strips each across the roof, bonnet and rear section, as well as
the vehicle’s sides. Like an e-book reader, there are several million
microcapsules in each E Ink film. The structure and arrangement of the
colour particles they contain can be changed by applying an electric
voltage. This allows the typical colours and patterns of Mahlangu’s
art to be generated in constantly changing compositions.
The animations are also accompanied by an equally extraordinary
sound, specially composed by Renzo Vitale, the BMW Group’s Creative
Director, Sound, for the BMW i5 Flow NOSTOKANA. To combine the
soundscape of the BMW brand with that of the South African Ndebele
culture, Vitale used sequences from Mahlangu’s voice, as well as the
sound of the feather brushes she used for painting. These were
combined with sounds produced by the colour pencils employed in the
BMW design studio and the acoustic signal heard as feedback when
operating the BMW i5’s touch display. This created a sound mix that
starts off softly at the beginning of each colour change and increases
in intensity as the animation progresses.
To accurately recreate every detail of the complex
ornamentation, the BMW i5 Flow NOSTOKANA has been fitted with 1,349
sections of film, each of which can be individually controlled. The
laser cutting process used to trim the film and the electronic control
design were developed in partnership with E Ink. The adaptation of the
technology for curved surfaces, as well as the programmed animations,
are all BMW Group in-house developments.
Overall, colour-change technology is developing rapidly. The BMW
iX Flow featuring E Ink presented in 2022 had the ability to switch
from white to black at the push of a button. This was followed just
one year later by the first multi-coloured implementation. The 240
sections of film applied to BMW i Vision Dee were able to display up
to 32 colours. This latest phase of development now enables even more
colours and patterns. At the same time, the sections of the film are
more robust – which could make potential future series production
easier. However, for the time being, the BMW i5 Flow NOSTOKANA will
remain one of a kind.
Tribute to a pioneering artist and her work.
As
a globally respected artist, Esther Mahlangu is known for her Ndebele
paintings, whose ornamentation originally symbolised major events or
festive occasions. Mahlangu separated the designs from their original
meaning and transferred them for the first time to canvas, carpets and
everyday objects, thus preserving them for the future. The BMW i5 Flow
NOSTOKANA is now reinterpreting this artistic language.
In presenting this designer car at Frieze Los Angeles, BMW
continues its long-standing cooperation with the renowned art fair. At
the same time, the BMW Art Car that formed the basis for this tribute
will also be on display in South Africa for the first time in over 30
years as part of the exhibition hosted by the Iziko Museums of South
Africa and the BMW Group in Cape Town “Then I Knew I Was Good at
Painting”: Esther Mahlangu. A Retrospective. The exhibition,
which runs until 11 August 2024, honours the life’s work of one of
South Africa’s most influential artists and cultural ambassadors.
In Los Angeles, BMW will once again be presenting Frieze Music
in collaboration with Frieze. Since 2019, the joint initiative between
the two partners has brought together a large group of musicians at
the intersection of music and art. The event’s return to Los Angeles
will be celebrated on 29 February with a live performance by Sudan
Archives at the Hammer Museum.
If you have any questions, please contact:
BMW Group Corporate Communications
Steven Woerns
Press spokesperson, BMW Group
Design
Telephone: +49-151-601-16992
Email: Steven.Woerns@bmw.com
Prof. Dr. Thomas Girst
Head of BMW Group Cultural
Engagement
Telephone: +49-89-382-24753
Email: Thomas.Girst@bmwgroup.com
BMW i5 eDrive40:
Power consumption combined in WLTP cycle: 18.9
– 15.9 kWh/100 km
Electric range in WLTP cycle: 497 – 582 km
