Inspired by Esther Mahlangu's 1991 BMW 525i Art Car, the i5 Flow Nostokana revives its unique designs with E Ink.
When BMW first started implementing E Ink into its concept cars, it was pretty cool, but it felt like a bit of a gimmick. The automaker has now advanced the technology to the point where vehicles equipped with it not only change colors but also serve as dynamic art installations
Inspired by the iconic E34 generation 1991 BMW 525i Art Car designed by Esther Mahlangu, a pioneer as both the first woman to contribute to the series and the first African artist, the 2024 BMW i5 Flow Nostokana emerges as the first high-performance art car. A design as dynamic as the canvas it is painted on.
Accordingly, the creation of the new i5 art car involved Mahlangu's collaboration. Its color-changing exterior was achieved using 1,349 sections of E Ink film that were meticulously laser-cut and individually controlled.
BMW is the only company that has developed the technology to handle the complex curved surfaces on a vehicle's exterior as well as the animations you see above. The i5 Flow Nostokana has two stripes on the side and two more along the hood, roof and trunk, which contain millions of microcapsules that can be color-changed with electric current.
The new Art Car represents E Ink's latest step forward in the automotive context. BMW was only able to change the color of E Ink from black to white when it first started applying it to vehicles in 2022. Last year the BMW i Vision Dee concept showed that its vehicles could display up to 32 colours, and the i5 Flow Nostokana demonstrates the automaker's ability to create complex shapes and patterns with precision.
BMW says the i5 Flow Nostokana will forever remain a one-off, but the E Ink strips that enable its color-changing design are so durable that it could one day make it possible to implement them into production vehicles.
BMW has partnered with composer Renzo Vitale to create a soundscape for the car, which will be on display at Frieze Los Angeles starting February 29. The composition was created using feathers that Mahlangu used to create her exquisite paintings. her voice. These were mixed with the pen sounds used by BMW designers.
“The BMW i5 Flow NOSTOKANA honors the history of the BMW brand and continues the story of our global cultural interaction in a unique way,” said Andrian van Hooydonk, Head of BMW Group Design. “It combines art and design with progressive technology. “Here, technology itself becomes art.”
