“Where do we go from here?” Louisiana Museum and BMW Group initiate a symposium about arts and sustainability during the World Climate Summit in Copenhagen

Copenhagen. On the occasion of the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen (COP15), the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art in collaboration with BMW Group, invites the public to an open symposium comprising international names in the fields of architecture, design, contemporary art and technology.The one-day symposium will, among others, discuss the new challenges pertaining to the environment as well as issues of sustainability in the creative sector. A number of the world’s leading innovative personalities will present their ideas and visions for the future in lectures and discussions.

“Where do we go from here”?

The symposium “Where do we go from here?” is to take place on Saturday, 12 December 2009, 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. in the museum concert hall. The participants of the symposium are the artists Olafur Eliasson, Sissel Tolaas, Shilpa Gupta and Ann Kristin Lislegaard; the engineer Matthias Schuler, Transsolar; the environmental entrepreneur Kresse Wesling, Elvis & Kresse; the designer and architect Patricia Urquiola; Ulrich Kranz, Head of “project i”, BMW Group. Moderators for the day are: Peter Weibel, artist, curator and theoretician; Hans Ulrich Obrist, Co-Director of Exhibitions and Programmes and Director of International Projects, Serpentine Gallery, London, whom the English art magazine ArtReview has recently named the world’s most powerful person in contemporary art in 2009. The symposium has been initiated as a collaboration of Louisiana Museum of Modern Art and BMW Group.

Olafur Eliasson’s “Your mobile expectations: BMW H2R project”  

Besides the exhibitions “Green Architecture for the Future,” “Faith, Hope and Love: Jacob Holdt’s America,” “The World is Yours” will also be on view at the Louisiana Museum, a major international survey of contemporary art. “The World is Yours” showcases Olafur Eliasson’s 16th BMW Art Car titled “Your mobile expectations: BMW H2R project.” (2008) Eliasson’s project transforms an object of advanced industrial design into a work of art that critically and poetically reflects on the relationship between global warming and the automotive industry. The BMW H2R race car, a hydrogen-powered vehicle, was developed to attain speed records while pursuing a sustainable future based on the use of regenerative fuel. Eliasson has removed the car’s outer shell and replaced it with a complex, translucent skin made of steel mesh, reflective steel panels, and many layers of ice.

The BMW Group and the World Climate Summit

In addition, during COP 15, BMW Group will provide more than 30 cars for the official UN shuttle fleet including hydrogen cars and highly efficient Diesel automobiles. Furthermore, BMW Group will integrate four fully electric MINI E into a fleet of cars, transferring delegates to green technology showcases. BMW Group will also be involved in various official side events throughout, including a panel discussion by the German Ministry for the Environment on December 9th and an event organized by the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research.  Moreover, BMW Group is official supporting partner of “Hopenhagen,” a movement and network of activists founded to build a better future for the planet and a more sustainable way of life. Says Frank-Peter Arndt, member of BMW AG’s board of management: “The BMW Group is the world's most sustainable car company. In 2009, this was confirmed by the renowned Dow Jones Sustainability Index for the fifth year in a row. No manufacturer uses its resources more effectively. We will maintain this course - with our products and with their production. It is our declared goal for sustainability to become the guiding principle of how we define all processes within our entire value chain.” 

The BMW Group and Contemporary Art

With over 100 major projects worldwide BMW Group’s cultural program has been an essential element of corporate communications for almost 40 years. Besides architecture and design as well as classical music and jazz, contemporary art is an integral part of BMW Group’s cultural engagement..1972 saw the completion of three large-format paintings, “Rot,” “Gelb,” “Blau,” commissioned for the Munich headquarters building from artist Gerhard Richter. The Nationalgalerie Prize in Berlin, the “Prix BMW” at the Paris Photo or the “Premio de Pintura” awarded by BMW and the Spanish Crown – they all aim at promoting young art. BMW has been involved for many years as an associate partner of the Leipzig International Artist Programme and the young curators’ workshop during the Berlin Biennial. Whether at the Art Basel, the Art Basel Miami Beach, the Frieze Art Fair in London, the FIAC Paris, the Johannesburg Art Fair and Art Indonesia – BMW has been or still is on the spot at art exhibitions worldwide, both as a partner and with the provision of a VIP courtesy shuttle service. Whenever the BMW Group engages in culture, it is committed to guaranteeing absolute freedom of creative potential. This freedom is just as important for ground-breaking artistic work as it is vital for innovations in a successful business enterprise.

Further information on the symposium is available from Louisiana’s director Poul Erik Tøjner as well as Susannah Hartz, Head of Press.

The language of the symposium is English. Free admission for the museum’s guests. It is recommended to book seats from www.louisiana.dk

Since there is only a limited number of seats in the concert hall, enrollment is necessary. All press please contact: press@louisiana.dk. / Mobile: +45 2858 5052. Press photos, biographies of panelists and moderators can be obtained from the Louisiana press website: http://press.louisiana.dk

Louisiana Museum of Modern Art

Gl. Strandvej 13

DK-Humlebæk

+45 88 43 50 52  l  +45 28 58 50 52

press@louisiana.dk

The BMW Group

The BMW Group is one of the most successful manufacturers of automobiles and motorcycles in the world with its BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce brands. As a global company, the BMW Group operates 24 production facilities in 13 countries and has a global sales network in more than 140 countries. The BMW Group achieved a global sales volume of more than 1.43 million automobiles and over 101,000 motorcycles for the 2008 financial year. Revenues for 2008 totalled EUR 53.2 billion, with earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) of EUR 921 million. The company employed a global workforce of approximately 98,000 associates on 30 September 2009. The success of the BMW Group has always been built 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. As a result of its efforts, the BMW Group has been ranked industry leader in the Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes for the last five years.

For further inquiries pls contact:

BMW Group Corporate Communications

Thomas Girst, Spokesperson Cultural Communications

Telephone: +49 89 382 24753, Fax: +49 89 382 28017

Micaela Sandstede, Spokesperson Cultural Communications

Telephone: +49 89 382 61611, Fax: +49 89 382 24418 

www.bmwgroup.com/culture

press@bmwgroup.com