BMW has revealed a new art car called the i5 Flow Nostokana, which combines South African art with next-generation colour-changing technology. Created with artist Esther Mahlangu, famous for her Ndebele painting, the car is going on show in Los Angeles today.
Art meets technology
The i5-based vehicle is Mahlangu's second BMW art car, after painting up a 525i in 1991, though the new model uses BMW's Flow technology, which allows cars to change colour.
First seen on the iX Flow concept in 2022, then the i Vision Dee in 2023, the technology uses a film with colour particles, the structure and arrangement of which changes by applying electric voltage. With that tech, the BMW iX Flow could switch from black to white, while the i Vision Dee could display up to 32 colours.
The technology, which is similar to the E Ink used in e-reader devices, has been applied in strips on the Nostokana's bodywork, including the bonnet, roof, doors and wheels. In total, 1,349 sections of Flow film have been applied, and each one can be controlled individually. That has allowed Mahlangu's geometric designs to be switched rapidly, creating an animation.
Sights and sounds
To complement the Flow technology, BMW's creative director for sound has composed an aural accompaniment to the animation. To combine BMW's world and that of Mahlangu, Renzo Vitale used sequences from the artist's voice, as well as the sounds of her feather brushes, in the composition. Sounds produced by pencils in BMW's design division and the acoustic feedback of the i5's touchscreen were also incorporated, melding the car's background with that of the artist.
"It is fascinating to me to see how modern technology can expand my art and make it accessible to a completely new audience," said 88-year-old Mahlangu.
The i5 Flow Nostokana will go on show today at the Frieze Los Angeles art fair, with which BMW has a long-standing cooperation. Simultaneously, Mahlangu's 1991 art car will go on display in South Africa for the first time in 30 years in an exhibition hosted by the Iziko Museums of South Africa and BMW Group in Cape Town.