INITIATIVES.
BMW COLLECTORS CO.
By investing in cultural platforms that broaden access and celebrate creative excellence, BMW contributes to the growth of South Africa's artistic ecosystem while reinforcing its commitment to innovation, progress and cultural leadership.
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EVENTS.
The BMW Collectors co.
BMW South Africa's events programme offers unique opportunities to engage with art, culture and creative thinking through carefully curated experiences. From intimate collector gatherings to public cultural platforms, each event is designed to inspire meaningful dialogue, broaden perspectives and connect audiences with the people and ideas shaping contemporary culture. Rooted in creativity, discovery and exchange, these experiences reflect BMW's ongoing commitment to cultural engagement and artistic innovation
BMW Car: The BMW Collectors Co. programme offers unique opportunities to engage with art, culture and creative thinking through carefully curated experiences.
Panel: From intimate collector gatherings to public cultural platforms, each event is designed to inspire meaningful dialogue, broaden perspectives and connect audiences with the people and ideas shaping contemporary culture.
Penny: Rooted in creativity, discovery and exchange, these experiences reflect BMW's ongoing commitment to cultural engagement and artistic innovation.
For more than five decades, BMW has supported the arts, recognising the important role creativity plays in shaping culture, inspiring innovation and enriching society.
Art Generation 2025
The BMW Art Generation
The BMW Art Generation is an annual signature event of The BMW Collectors Co., bringing together artists, collectors, curators, academics and cultural practitioners through a dynamic programme of exhibitions, conversations and cultural experiences.
Over four editions, the platform has evolved into an important gathering within South Africa's cultural landscape, welcoming diverse voices from across Africa and the diaspora.
Through exhibitions, talks and cultural programming, The BMW Art Generation creates opportunities for artistic exchange, intergenerational dialogue and meaningful engagement with contemporary culture.
Now in its fourth edition, The BMW Art Generation Vol. IV continues this legacy through an expanded programme centred on the theme From Whose Waters Do We Drink?
Presented at The BMW Art Generation at BMW Haus, the platform reflects BMW's enduring belief that creativity is a catalyst for innovation, progress and positive societal impact.
Follow BMW Art Generation on Instagram for the latest programme announcements, participating artists, event updates and cultural content.
Art Generation 2025
Art Generation 2024
Art Generation 2023
PARTNERSHIPS.
The BMW Centre for Art Education.
The BMW Centre for Art Education (CFAE) at Zeitz MOCAA, launched in September 2024 after a three-year partnership with BMW Group South Africa, features two multifunctional classrooms and art-making facilities on Level 1 to support studio-based learning and workshops. It amplifies Zeitz MOCAA’s mission to make contemporary African art accessible through education, dialogue, and participation, reflecting BMW’s belief that cultural engagement spurs knowledge sharing, empowerment, and nation-wide reinvention.
African Film and Media Arts Collective.
The 20th BMW Art Car edition, embodied by Julie Mehretu’s BMW M Hybrid V8 unveiled in Paris and shown at Le Mans, catalyzed the pan-African AFMAC initiative—empowering emerging film and media artists across Africa with workshops in major cities to produce a 2026 short-film anthology that will be exhibited with Mehretu’s Art Car at Zeitz MOCAA, cementing BMW’s role as a cultural catalyst and “vocal archive” for Africa’s artistic creativity.
Esther Mahlangu Retrospective.
Esther Mahlangu became the first woman and first African artist commissioned by BMW for its Art Car collection in 1991, turning a BMW 525i into a moving canvas adorned with Ndebele patterns. Thirty-plus years later, the partnership remains a symbol of cultural respect and artistic innovation, opening doors for greater appreciation of African art and Mahlangu’s status as a living icon celebrated worldwide for preserving and transforming tradition through contemporary expression.
FNB Art Fair.
FNB Art Joburg is Africa’s leading contemporary art fair. The BMW South Africa exhibition space at the Sandton Convention Centre became a storytelling hub, celebrating the BMW Art Cars’ 50th anniversary. Highlights included René Staud’s large-format works, tracing the collection from Calder’s 1975 first Art Car to Mehretu’s 2023 piece. The space fostered cultural dialogue and engagement, linking BMW Art Generation and FNB Art Joburg to inspire Africa’s creative future.