Esther Mahlangu is an extraordinary 89 Years old woman from South Africa who designed BMW. At the age of 89, she is still going strong. She first came to international attention in 1991 when her work was featured in a BMW ad campaign, the BMW 525i Art Car. Since then, she has gone on to decorate cars for other major brands, including Audi, Fiat, and Nissan.
Mahlangu’s work is inspired by the traditional Ndebele art print, which she learned from her mother and grandmother at a young age according to a report by the Washington Post on October 3, 2014. Today, her work is featured internationally, and she shows no signs of slowing down. In addition to her decorated cars, Mahlangu has also worked on public art installations and murals. Her work is a testament to the power of art to transcend borders and cultures.
The African art print is a colourful geometric pattern that women in the Ndebele tribe decorate the walls of houses with. Esther Mahlangu surprised many when she took up other projects with BMW in 2016 at the age of 85 according to CNN. The BMW Individual 7 Series was unveiled at the Frieze Fair in London where it was auctioned including BMW Number 12 car which was also exhibited at the British Museum as part of ‘South Africa: the art of a nation’.
See also: Laolu Senbanjo, an African Giant African Sacred Art makes big waves
She has also worked with other high-end brands, including a collaboration with Belvedere beverage company for their RED campaign, in the fight against AIDS, the Swedish sneaker brand Eytys, and the British Airways planes tails. Rolls-Royce even named a Phantom collection car in her honor recently in 2020.
It is remarkable how Mahlangu redefined a traditional house painting that women undertake to mark familial milestones and preserve ancestry into an internationally recognized master art. Another talent who captivated the world with African art print is Laolu with his Sacred Art of the Yoruba Ori Ritual a pattern also referred to as Afromysterics.
