Now in its 50th year, BMW’s Art Car series has once again landed front and center on the world’s stage, featuring in several retrospective exhibitions and commemorative races. As part of its anniversary, the automotive brand has also reunited with PUMA to release a new capsule collection inspired by the 2017 Cao Fei Art Car.
The respective capsule marks the third installment in the brands’ ongoing collaboration, following on from the limited-edition range honoring Alexander Calder’s BMW 3.0 CSL Art Car. Continuing to bridge the gap between fashion and fast cars, the latest drop serves as an ode to Cao Fei’s electrifying BMW M6 GT3, turning the digitally designed strokes and curves into a line of stealthy streetwear garments.
“The Art Car itself is an exploration of the boundary between virtual and real — a fusion of data, speed and sensory experience. It isn’t just a physical presence on the racetrack, but a spiritual vessel that lives equally in digital space and social discourse,” shared Fei in an official statement.
Reflecting on the adaptation of her Art Car into a collection, she explains, “Moving it from the racetrack into everyday life is the most vivid realization of its core idea. It’s no longer an unreachable art car, it becomes a skin, intimately connected to the body and daily life. That shift embodies another dimension of vitality: the Art Car’s capacity to transcend its original medium and embed itself into a wider audience.”
Tapping into the artist’s concept, PUMA took to the BMW M Festival in Chengdu, China to celebrate the release of the new collaborative collection. At the event hosted at Tianfu International Circuit, BMW M Festival provided a dynamic backdrop to the affair, where global creatives and tastemakers delved into the capsule as well as the wider contemporary BMW culture.
To kick off, the guests were invited to tour the festival, taking part in go-kart challenges and exploring the various pop-ups across the circuit. Later in the day, the group sat down for an intimate talk with the artist herself. Alongside her 2017 BMW M6 GT3, she spoke of her inspiration and processes, before signing garments and posters.
With everyone suited up in the statement racer jacket, they soon headed back to the race tracks for a test drive in a line-up of BMW M2 and M3 models. The experience came to life with the bright lights of the tracks shining down on the fluorescent pink tones of the garments, bringing Cao Fei’s artistic vision of racing into the spotlight.
Be sure to check out what went down at the Chengdu event in the gallery above. To shop the Cao Fei Art Car Collection by PUMA and BMW, head to the dedicated webshop now.
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