Camille Blatrix to explore concept of desire for BMW Open Work 2019. Artwork inspired by BMW technology to premiere at Frieze London in October 2019.

For the third consecutive year BMW and Frieze continue their long-term partnership with the major art initiative BMW Open Work by Frieze. Drawing inspiration from BMW Design and engineering, the commission brings together art, technology and design in a pioneering multi-platform format. The artist chosen to create this year’s BMW Open Work by Frieze is Paris-based Camille Blatrix.

The Concept
Curated by Attilia Fattori Franchini since its inception, BMW Open Work gives artists the opportunity to push the boundaries of their artistic work, utilizing technology and design to pursue practice in innovate new directions. Succeeding Olivia Erlanger (2017) and Sam Lewitt (2018), the artistic intervention of Camille Blatrix for BMW Open Work for Frieze, will also debut during the fair from October 2 – 6, 2019 in London.

For his commission, Blatrix has chosen to work with BMW Individual, BMW Group’s department specialized in car customization. Making use of BMW Individual’s technical skills and craftmanship, the artist will explore perfection, investigating the seductive, fascinating pull exerted by technology and creating a dialogue about the sources of desire.

Blatrix said: “My practice is deeply rooted in a close dialogue with makers and suppliers, with ideas emerging intuitively from a direct technical conversation. Thanks to BMW Individual, I can harness unparalleled technical knowledge, skills and facilities in a truly open-ended way. I’m excited to explore possibilities of production and consider limits of physical perfection working towards the commission at Frieze London.”

Fattori Franchini said: “At its third year, BMW Open Work has developed into a unique encounter between industrial knowledge, technology, and artistic thought. Working with such a talented practitioner as Camille Blatrix is an exciting privilege. I can’t wait to see how his interest in the emotional possibilities of functional objects produces new and uncanny relationships through working with BMW.”

Launched in 2017, BMW Open Work invites an artist to develop a visionary project drawing on expertise from engineering, technology and BMW design considering them as tools for innovation and artistic experimentation. For its first iteration, artist Olivia Erlanger integrated motion-sensitive sculpture, audio and immersive fog in her work “Body Electric”; while in 2018, Sam Lewitt engaged with BMW intellectual property and engine production to reimagine the manufacturing cycle as an engine in “CORE (the Work)”.

Blatrix is now in the process of developing his commission for BMW Open Work, which will premiere at Frieze London in October 2019. Following recent presentations at institutions in Europe, this will be the artist’s first major project to be shown in London.

For further information in the course of the project, please visit: https://frieze.com/bmw-open-work

For further questions please contact:
Doris Fleischer
BMW Group Corporate and Governmental Affairs
Cultural Engagement
Telephone: +49-151-601-27806

Prof. Dr Thomas Girst
BMW Group Corporate and Governmental Affairs
Head of Cultural Engagement
Telephone: +49-89-382-24753


 About Frieze
Frieze is the leading platform for modern and contemporary art for scholars, connoisseurs, collectors and the general public alike. Frieze comprises three magazines - frieze magazine, Frieze Masters Magazine and Frieze Week - and three international art fairs - Frieze London, Frieze Masters and Frieze New York. Additionally, Frieze organizes a program of special courses and lectures in London and abroad through Frieze Academy.

Frieze was founded in 1991 by Matthew Slotover and Amanda Sharp, with the launch of frieze magazine, the leading international magazine of contemporary art and culture. In 2003, Sharp and Slotover launched Frieze London art fair, which takes place each October in The Regent’s Park, London. In 2012, they launched Frieze New York, which occurs each Frieze is the leading platform for modern and contemporary art for scholars, connoisseurs, collectors and the general public alike. Additionally, Frieze organizes a program of special courses and lectures in London and abroad through Frieze Academy.

BMW Open Work
BMW Open Work annually invites an artist to develop a visionary project that creates an immersive experience for the viewer. Drawing inspiration from BMW design and engineering, the commissioned artists will consider current and future technologies as tools for innovation and artistic experimentation. The initiative’s title ‘Open Work’ is inspired by Umberto Eco’s literary essay ‘Opera Aperta’ (1962) which proposes the idea that artworks are constituted in part by the public or by chance and are therefore open to a wide range of interpretations. BMW has been partnering with Frieze since 2004. In 2012, they co-initiated the ‘Frieze Sounds’ program.

About Attilia Fattori Franchini
Attilia Fattori Franchini is an independent curator and writer based in Vienna. She is cofounder of the non-profit platforms bubblebyte.org and Opening Times and contributes essays and reviews to international publications such as Mousse Magazine, CURA, and Flash Art International. She is the curator of BMW Open Work by Frieze; Curva Blu, a residency project in Favignana, Sicily; the Emergent section of Miart, Milan; and the latest edition of the Termoli Art Prize. Recent projects include Could you visit me in dreams? as part of curated_by 2018, Vienna; “Red Lake” at Point Centre for Contemporary Art, Nicosia (2018); and ARS17+ at Kiasma, Museum, Helsinki (2017).

About Camille Blatrix
Camille Blatrix (*1984 in Paris) graduated from the Ecolé nationale supérieure des beaux-arts de Paris. Solo exhibitions include: La Verriére, Bruxelles (upcoming); Unlimited, Art Basel (2019); Lafayette Anticipations - Fondation d'entreprise Galeries Lafayette, Paris (2019); Kunstverein Braunschweig, (2018); Taylor Macklin, Zurich (2018); CCA Wattis Institute for Contemporary Arts, San Francisco (2016); and Mostyn, Wales (2015). Blatrix has additionally participated in group exhibitions at: Hessel Museum of Art, CCS Bard Galleries, NY (2018); Museo Experimental El Eco, Mexico City (2016), FRAC Île-de-France, Paris (2016); Palais de Tokyo, Paris (2015); and Sculpture Center, New York (2015). Furthermore, he partook at the Lyon Biennale (2015) and in 2014, Blatrix won the Prize Fondation d’entreprise Ricard.

About BMW Group’s Cultural Commitment
For almost 50 years now, the BMW Group has initiated and engaged in over 100 cultural cooperations worldwide. The company places the main focus of its long-term commitment on contemporary and modern art, classical music and jazz as well as architecture and design. In 1972, three large-scale paintings were created by the artist Gerhard Richter specifically for the foyer of the BMW Group's Munich headquarters. Since then, artists such as Andy Warhol, Jeff Koons, Daniel Barenboim, Jonas Kaufmann and architect Zaha Hadid have co-operated with BMW. In 2016 and 2017, female artist Cao Fei from China and American John Baldessari created the next two vehicles for the BMW Art Car Collection. Besides co-initiatives, such as BMW Tate Live, the BMW Art Journey and the “Opera for All” concerts in Berlin, Munich and London, the company also partners with leading museums and art fairs as well as orchestras and opera houses around the world. The BMW Group takes absolute creative freedom in all its cultural activities – as this initiative is as essential for producing groundbreaking artistic work as it is for major innovations in a successful business.

Further information: www.bmwgroup.com/culture and www.bmwgroup.com/culture/overview.

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The BMW Group
With its four brands BMW, MINI, Rolls-Royce and BMW Motorrad, the BMW Group is the world’s leading premium manufacturer of automobiles and motorcycles and also provides premium financial and mobility services. The BMW Group production network comprises 31 production and assembly facilities in 15 countries; the company has a global sales network in more than 140 countries.

In 2018, the BMW Group sold over 2,490,000 passenger vehicles and more than 165,000 motorcycles worldwide. The profit before tax in the financial year 2018 was € 9.815 billion on revenues amounting to € 97.480 billion. As of 31 December 2018, the BMW Group had a workforce of 134,682 employees.

The success of the BMW Group has always been based on long-term thinking and responsible action. The company has therefore established ecological and social sustainability throughout the value chain, comprehensive product responsibility and a clear commitment to conserving resources as an integral part of its strategy.

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