Munich. What does the new era of Sheer Driving
Pleasure look like? That’s the question the BMW Vision M NEXT,
preparing for its presentation in Munich in a few days’ time, seeks to
answer. As part of a collaboration with the BMW Group, artist Thomas
Demand has produced a series of photographs which pull back the covers
on some early details of the car – without removing them completely.
This is not the first time Demand and the BMW Group have got together.
Back in 2000 the BMW Group commissioned Demand to create a piece for
the prestigious AutoWerke collection, which saw 28 internationally
renowned artists including Candida Höfer, Wolfgang Tillmans, Thomas
Struth and Demand himself turn their attentions to the themes of cars
and mobility. And now Demand has refocused his materials and medium of
choice – papier, cardboard and photography – on a new subject area:
the mobility of the future.
“Like most artists, I’m fascinated by
things we haven’t seen before, images still to be discovered. So I was
delighted to accept the invitation of Adrian van Hooydonk and his
team. I think the way I look at photography puts me in a good place to
bring out essential, abstract elements. The M NEXT study is a highly
complex vehicle whose radical design extends beyond the job
description of an everyday model. A concept like this represents a
very interesting opportunity for me to transport these ideas and
future forms into the public consciousness.” Thomas Demand.
The new era of Sheer Driving Pleasure.
The shape and substance of future mobility are the forces behind both
the BMW Vision iNEXT and BMW’s latest Vision Vehicle: the BMW Vision M
NEXT. Where the BMW Vision iNEXT shows us the ways in which autonomous
driving will change life on board our vehicles, the BMW Vision M NEXT
demonstrates how technology can be harnessed to enhance driving
pleasure. In the new age of mobility, intelligent technologies will
fuel sporty driving and the person at the wheel will be turned into
the ultimate driver.
Whether it’s the relaxation of EASE driving in the BMW Vision iNEXT
or a dynamic BOOST experience at the helm of the BMW Vision M NEXT, in
both cases people – and their emotions and needs – take centre stage,
design and technology enriching the desired driving experience.
“When we reveal a new vehicle, there
are myriad overall views at play. This time we’re taking a new
approach and presenting a selection of artworks ahead of the car’s
unveiling. The photos are fascinating and tell their own story. They
are very close to the BMW Vision Vehicle and yet completely abstract,
pure art. They will only become tangible when you set eyes on the
Vision Vehicle itself.” Adrian van Hooydonk, Senior Vice President BMW
Group Design
Down to details.
Thomas Demand and Adrian van Hooydonk hold one another in high regard
and regularly take time to discuss all things urban and future
mobility-related. It therefore made sense for the BMW Group to give
Demand a sneak preview of the BMW Vision M NEXT and invite the
inspiration to flow. The artist duly picked out various details and
created paper and cardboard models based on them. These provided the
focal point for the photographs that followed. Demand’s concept here
is based on the actual colour scheme and visual forms of the BMW
Vision M NEXT. However, he zooms in so closely on the surface of the
vision vehicle that his paper and cardboard models become removed from
the subject matter at hand. His endeavours are encapsulated in four
works which stay very close to the details of the BMW Vision M NEXT
and yet also represent abstract photographic art. Audiences will have
to wait until the presentation of the BMW Vision M NEXT in Munich
later this month to see the art fleshed out into tangible reality.