Robin Rhode's Painting with the 2009 BMW Z4 Roadster Car Tires

Detail of a section of the football-field size painting

The painting and movie screen showing the footage of the making of the Rhode's Project

On exhibit at Vanderbilt Hall of Grand Central is BMW‘s collaboration with contemporary artist ROBIN RHODE. Rhode used the all-new 2009 BMW Z4 Roadster mounted with special paint dispensers behind its wheels to create a football-field size painting. A 30’ x 40’ section of the huge painting is being exhibited at Vanderbilt Hall together with the car and video. From a tower 30 feet above his canvas laid out on the floor, Rhode choreographed the movements of an all-new 2009 BMW Z4 Roadster and used a remote control device to direct when and where colored paint was sprayed onto the tires which marked the canvas. The whole process was captured on video at Los Angeles’ Downey Studios. The footage is shown in high-definition on a 16' x 9' screen as part of the installation. Rhode considered his role in the project as a “creative navigator,” expressing the fun relationship between the artist, design and technological advancements. “As an artist I am always keen to collaborate with other disciplines like dance, music and now film,” said Rhode. “I’m a pure car enthusiast. But I also liked the idea of going through childlike actions to create a painting that is a way to engage with technology and design.”
The public art installation is free and open to the public from March 25 through April 6, 2009 from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. in Grand Central Terminal’s Vanderbilt Hall.