- Korean avant-garde artist Lee Kun-Yong created a one-off BMW i7 Art Car using vivid red and abstract motifs.
- The vehicle will be displayed at the BMW Lounge in Seoul this September alongside 18 mini Art Cars.
- BMW’s exhibition also marks 50 years of its Art Car programme and 30 years of BMW Korea.
BMW’s flagship electric sedan has taken on an unexpected new role in Seoul - not as a luxury limo, but as a mobile artwork.
The i7, fitted with the M Package, has been reimagined by one of South Korea’s most celebrated avant-garde artists, Lee Kun-Yong.
Chaos meets craft
Lee, 83, is known for his performance art that often uses the body as a brush.
For this project, he traded canvas for car, transforming the sizeable EV into a vivid expression of movement and form.
Anchored by a bright red base, still visible across the fenders, skirts, roof pillars and rear deck, the rest of the i7 is wrapped in swirling motifs: faces, hearts, leaves and abstract forms. Each side tells its own story, with no attempt at symmetry.
BMW explains the idea was to “reflect the precision and responsiveness inherent in the dialogue between driver and car, drawing parallels to his own artistic practice.”
A bridge between art and machine
For Lee, the collaboration goes beyond decoration. “I view art as a bridge between different objects, different people and even different perspectives,” he said. His hope is that the i7 becomes a point of connection not just between artist and audience, but also between technology and creativity.
The G70 7-Series hasn’t been short of design controversy, as its split headlights and bold grille remain talking points. While enthusiasts await the Neue Klasse update due in 2026, this one-off has put the current model in a very different spotlight.
Seoul on show
The car will appear at the BMW Lounge in Seoul from September 3 to 6, alongside 18 miniature BMW art cars. On September 4, Lee will create a fresh canvas live, inspired by his automotive work.
The display also marks 50 years of BMW Art Cars globally and 30 years of BMW Korea. To celebrate, the brand is backing a major art fair in Seoul’s Gagman district, featuring 120 galleries from 30 countries. Music is on the bill too, with local artist Crush headlining Frieze Music on September 5 with his mix of pop, R&B and hip hop.
For BMW, the i7 art car isn’t about lap times or battery range. It’s about showing that sometimes, the most radical lines aren’t penned by designers, but painted by artists.
