Koons's BMW Art Car to race at Le Mans

BMW will field the latest in its long series of Art Cars at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, June 12-13. This is the 17th Art Car commissioned by BMW.

Jeff Koons follows others such as Roy Lichtenstein, Andy Warhol and Jenny Holzer in designing an Art Car. The BMW M3 GT2 Le Mans car from Koons will be a rolling work of art during the 87th running of the famous race.

Koons will be present and will sign his finished car at the Centre Pompidou in Paris on June 1.

Koons released the preliminary designs on Tuesday at a press conference in New York City. The artist used images of race cars, graphics and vibrant colors to design his digital collage.

"These race cars are like life," said Koons. "You can participate with it, add to it and let yourself transcend with its energy."

Koons car will be numbered "79" in honor of the year that Andy Warhol's Art Car raced the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

In preparation for the announcement, Koons traveled to and from Germany for the past two months meeting with BMW's team in Munich. Together they are exploring all possible mediums and application procedures to ensure a race-ready car by June. Koons has been using 3D computer-aided design models of the M3 GT2 to virtually evaluate his ideas from every angle.

Koons was able to join BMW's American Le Mans Series team for testing at Sebring, Fla., in February to get a true feel for the car. Not content to watch, Koons strapped himself in for a taste of real race speed. He also drove a BMW M3 Coupe on the circuit to further the exercise.

BMW announced that the number 79 Art Car will be driven by Andy Priaulx, Dirk Muller and Dirk Werner at Le Mans.

By Jake Lingeman