Porsche has a rich history of art cars, ranging from Janis Joplin’s psychedelic 356 to Richard Philip’s 911 RSR from 2019. But for its most recent art cars, Porsche chose to offer the Taycan to two artists. The automaker partnered with Art Battle, an international organization that brings up-and-coming artists into competition for a time-limited knock-out competition. For a recent round of Art Battle Canada, two artists, Rei Misiri and Megan Claire Keho, used the Porsche Taycan 4S as their canvases.
At an event dubbed “The Art of Electric,”
Misiri was given a black Taycan. The Toronto-based calligraphy artist
specializes in murals and cars. His work is “inspired by different cultures and
aesthetic elements from nature,” he explains. His favorite technique is the use
of bold but delicate pen and brush strokes in metallic paint against a black
background, and the Taycan was no exception.
Keho, by contrast, was given a white
Taycan because she works with large and brightly colored wall paintings. She
says she’s inspired by “people fighting for others and [tries] to create public
spaces where important conversations can be had.” With two hours to create
their art cars, the artists were invited to paint in front of a crowd of
people. The art battle was also filmed for online audiences via livestream, and
it was these crowds who would ultimately vote for the winner.
In the end, the black and metallic Porsche
painted by Misiri ended up winning by a small margin, giving him the
opportunity to continue on to the Art Battle Toronto finals. If he wins there,
he can go on to the National Championships.
The cars will be used by
Porsche Canada at media events, but not before the artists are allowed to get
behind the wheel of their cars. The cars will eventually be sold, but Porsche
says that, unfortunately, the artists actually painted on wraps, which will be
taken off before they go on sale.