How 5 Cars Have Become Muses for Artists

We've been saying it forever, the automobile is art on wheels, and today we're going to tell you about five muses that have inspired as many artists to create incredible works of art.Fiat 500It was obvious that our 500, the most iconic of popular cars, was a source of inspiration for great works. Ron Arad, an Israeli designer and artist, takes the Fiat 500 and treats it like a little flower to be dried, like those flowers that romantic damsels used to stick in books to preserve them. The result are his 'crushed 500s' and the series will be just called Pressed Flowers by the artist.In 2014 Arad was also commissioned to customize a 500, the Arad Edition, here perhaps we could even speak of obsession.

Ferrari 312 T2Staying in our territories, Motoring Art artist Andrea del Pesco painted Niki Lauda driving the Ferrari 312 T2 at Nürburgring in 1976, before his accident.That tragic event, which is in the memory of all F1 fans, inspired the artist who produced this work on canvas with oil paints. Andrea del Pesco often finds inspiration in Ferrari, and it can be seen in several of his paintings.

Mercedes - Benz W 196It may not be Andy Warhol's most famous work, but it is certainly one of his most monumental: the Mercedes, depicted in this more than four-meter-high canvas, won nine out of 12 Formula One races in the 1954/1955 season and became for the artist a symbol of postwar prosperity and industrial challenge.It is part of the Cars series, Andy Warhol's last work, and is worth between $12 million and $16 million. As well as Brillo boxes, Campbell soup, and Marilyn Monroe's face, the Mercedes is repeated sixteen times and depicted in as many colors on a black background.

Bugatti Type 43Speaking of works inspired by cars, one cannot fail to mention the self-portrait with which the painter Tamara de Lempicka immortalized herself in a luxurious emerald green Bugatti. Certainly the car inspired one of the most iconic female painters of the last century, but so did the historical period, the early 1920s, and the theme of female independence. Behind the steering wheel there is a blond woman, she, with bob hair and deerskin gloves, driving her car, a marvelous Bugatti Type 43, alone, confident and without the fear of looking the rest of the world straight in the eyes. The artist chooses to represent a new type of femininity, wealthy, emancipated, refined, and above all, with over-the-top tastes in car choice.

Aston Martin DB5 (and Fiat 500 again).A British sculptor, Chris Gilmour, whose signature trait is representing everyday objects on a one-to-one scale, was inspired by the Aston Martin DB5.He uses recycled cardboard assembled with glue and is maniacal in reproducing the details, including the interior, of his works on wheels.I say works in the plural because the Aston Martin is not the only car that has inspired him.Our 500 has also made its way into his heart, and the artist could not resist reproducing it to scale one by one with cardboard and glue.