If you find yourself in Munich in the next year, consider a trip to the BMW Museum. Currently, the Museum features an exhibition on the collaborations between BMW and some Italian designers. BMW is closer to Italy than the other German manufacturers and it shows in the Italian influence on BMW designs. Here’s the BMW press release on the show:

Original drawings from the BMW Design Archive, curated by American Dave Carp, support the cars on display.

On 7 June, the “Belle Macchine , Italian Automotive Design at BMW” exhibition opened its doors at the BMW Museum. With its famed sense for timeless aesthetics, Italy has set standards in fashion, interior and product design for as long as anyone can remember. And Italian designers have aslo left an enduring mark on the automotive world. This exhibition explores the influence of Italian design at BMW and provides a fascinating retrospective on the evolution of coachbuilding and body design over the past few decades.

It is a big exhibition with large sweeping vignettes.

BMW has drawn inspiration from Italian coachbuilding culture since as far back as the 1930s. Collaborations with renowned designers such as Giorgetto Giugiaro, Giovanni Michelotti and Marcello Gandini produced icons that have made a lasting impression on the brand. “BMW has harnessed Italian influences to create automotive design that blends class and elegance with modern forms and functionality. The combination of Italian design and German engineering excellence was a key driver of BMW’s growth into a premium manufacturer, ”explain curators Anna Schleypen and Klaus-Anton Altenbuchner. The exhibition illustrates this development with a variety of design sketches from the BMW Design Archive, a selection of exhibits and 23 historic vehicles, and provides a captivating insight into the design history of BMW.

The 1939 Touring Coupe won the 1940 Mille Miglia. The 2006 Mille Miglia Hommage was inspired by the historic car.

A tour of the exhibition

“Belle Macchine, Italian Automotive Design at BMW” extends over five platforms and ramps within the BMW Museum’s iconic “Bowl.” It starts with a general introduction into the world of Italian design, citing examples of the country’s endeavors in the fields of fashion and product design. The impact of noted Italian studios on the design of bodies for BMW vehicles occupies much of the exhibition space. For example, the BMW Garmisch concept car penned by Marcello Gandini represents the essence of Italian style and played a major role in the design of the original BMW 3 Series and 5 Series of the 1970s. As is clear from the numerous production cars on display, such as the popular BMW 1800TI/SA, the stylistic influence of Italian designers was leveraged to successful effect by a large number of models. BMW’s acquisition of fellow carmaker Glas is also brought under the spotlight with a three-strong line-up including the BMW 3000 V8, affectionately known as the “Glaserati”. The exhibition continues with a showcase of perfectly formed one-offs like the BMW Pininfarina Gran Lusso Coupé, BMW 2800 GTS Frua and BMW Nazca M12 designed by Fabrizio Giugiaro. These models were commissioned by the company to serve as sources of creative inspiration or put forward by the Italian designers themselves to ensure they were part of the conversation when BMW was scouting for partners.

1941 Berlin to Rome racer can be identified by the fully enveloped fenders. The design was by BMW and the car was built by Touring of Milan.

On the ramps between the platforms, visitors are taken on a visua lroad-trip with stop-offs including the legendary Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este on the shores of Lake Como–a beauty contest for historic vehicles of unparalleled tradition. The design drawings on show here provide further evidence of the artistic signature of Italian designers. The exhibition finishes on a high with a model of the BMW Vision Neue Klasse–the modern successor to the Italian- flavored original Neue Klasse of yeste ryear–and special study vehicles such as the BMW M1 Hommage. These cars see BMW recognizing the achievements of the Italian designers of the time and re-interpreting its own design history as a source of inspiration for its latest creations.

The Isetta (little Iso) was the work of an Italian airplane designer. The car was built by license by BMW starting in 1955.

The 700 was designed by Michelotti. It gave the 600 a more conventional and attractive look.

In another visual highlight, the exhibition area is enveloped in a 360-degree display–projected onto the walls of the “Bowl”–that showcases the work of Italian artist Giorgio de Chirico, who studied for a time in Munich.

1962 1500 Neue Klasse: The original Neue Klasse was designed in-house by BMW but with influence by Michelotti, who was under contract to BMW.

1962 3200 CS Bertone: The 1962 3200 CS Bertone was designed by a young Giorgetto Giugiaro while working at Bertone.

1959 3200 Vignale: Called the 3200 Vignale, this is actually 507 chassis number 70184 with a body designed by Michelotti and built at Vignale.

1969 2800 GTS Coupe: The 1969 2800 GTS Coupe was one of several one-offs designed by Pietro Frua on BMW chassis. This one is based on the 2800 CS E9 Coupe.

Two Glas Models: When BMW bought Glas, they inherited a big model line-up. The only two that got badged as BMWs (briefly) were the 1600 GT and the 3000 V8, both original designs by Pietro Frua.

The 1970 Garmisch was the work of Marcello Gandini. The original is lost, so BMW built a new one in 2019.

1991 Nazca M12: This design by Fabrizio Giugiaro (with help from dad), was the first of a series of three concepts based on 8 Series running gear.

2012 Zagato Coupe: Zagato rebodied two Z4s, one a cabrio and the other as this coupe

2013 Gran Lusso: A one-off collaboration with Pininfarina shows what the 7 Series might have looked like.