Petersen Automotive Museum Displays Keith Haring Z1

The Petersen Automotive Museum will be displaying the “The Unconventional Canvases of Keith Haring” starting December 17th. Keith Haring, a beloved New York artist, will have five vehicles on display.

“Keith Haring was such an important and loved figure in the art world and we are honored to be able to display such a unique collection of his art,” said Terry Karges, Executive Director of the Petersen Automotive Museum. “We had such a positive response after displaying his Land Rover in our lobby that we knew we had to share the rest of his art cars with our patrons. This new exhibit is a prime example of the Petersen’s mission to merge the worlds of art and automobiles.”

Keith Haring became famous in the 1980s and quickly became one of the world’s most influential modern artists. His work explored both the deeply political and the personal and, thanks to its simplistic, almost universal figures, Haring was able to reach across divides of race, class, gender and sexuality. His works on automobiles were created during artist-in-residencies at the Montreux Jazz Fest and 24 Hours of Le Mans, as well as at promotional events for the Fast Art Gallery in New Jersey and Galerie Hans Mayer in Düsseldorf. The imagery reflects the atmosphere, speed and life Haring witnessed at each of these locations.

Vehicles on display will include a 1962 SCAF/Mortarini Mini Ferrari 330 P-2, a 1963 Buick Special, a 1971 Land Rover Series III 109 Station Wagon, 1987 Honda CBR1000F Hurricane motorcycle and a 1991 BMW Z1. The exhibit will run through Sunday, June 4th, 2017 and will be located in the Armand Hammer Foundation Gallery on the first floor of the museum.