Color In Motion: Look At The BMW i5 Flow Art Car's Dynamic Palette

In today's ever-evolving automotive scene, BMW has advanced the E-ink technology to the point where it can transform automobiles into living works of art by changing their color.

The legendary E34-generation 1991 BMW 525i Art Car, which Esther Mahlangu created, serves as inspiration for the 2024 BMW i5 Flow Nostokana's design. As a reminder, Mahlangu was the first African artist and woman to work on the series. The new BMW i5 art automobile was co-created with Mahlangu as well.

Achieving its color-shifting exterior was made possible by using 1,349 carefully laser-cut and individually controlled strips of E-ink film. Only BMW has the technology to manage the intricate curving surfaces of an automobile's exterior, and that includes the animations you saw up there. The i5 Flow Nostokana has two strips along the side and two more across the top, bottom, and hood that hold millions of color-changing microcapsules.

Initially introduced to automobiles in 2022, BMW's E-ink could only be changed from black to white. The BMW i Vision Dee concept showed off displays with up to 32 colors last year, and the i5 Flow Nostokana demonstrates how precisely the manufacturer can create intricate patterns and forms. Interestingly, BMW claims that the E-ink strips used to create its color-changing pattern are strong enough to be used in mass-produced cars in the future.

Beginning on February 29, BMW will display the vehicle at the Frieze in Los Angeles along with a Renzo Vitale-composed soundtrack. Both Mahlangu's voice and the feathers she uses to make her beautiful paintings went into making this piece. In the background, you could hear the creak of pencils while the BMW design team worked.

"The BMW i5 Flow NOSTOKANA honors the history of the BMW brand and continues the story of our global cultural engagement in a unique way," stated Andrian van Hooydonk, head of BMW Group Design. 

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