Bentley Continental GT V8 S Convertible – Pop Art by Sir Peter Blake

Art on automobiles, so-called Art Cars, have been world-famous at least since the long lineage of corresponding BMWs. Various contemporary artists have already been able to create an unusual work of art in this way, which delights both art and car fans. Among them is Sir Peter Blake. He is Britain’s most famous representative in the sector of pop art. One of his most famous works is the record cover of the Beatles album “Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band”. He was knighted by the Queen and received an honorary doctorate from the Royal College of Art. His artwork adorns the walls of numerous galleries and collectors. In addition, he also designed record covers for The Who, Oasis and Paul Weller. In late 2015, he met representatives from Bentley and the charity organisation Care2Save. Together they came up with the idea of designing a unique Bentley and then auctioning it off.

Continental GT V8 S Convertible

In the time that followed, Sir Peter Blake sat down with Bentley designers. He decided on a Continental GT V8 S Convertible. Then he selected particularly bold paint colors from Bentley’s rich color selection. While the basic bodywork, including the doors and tailgate, weats “St. Luke’s Blue”, the sills and lower sections of the bumpers feature “British Racing Green”. For the grille surround, he chose “Fuchsia Pink”. A special detail is the hood in “Continental Yellow” with a hand-painted red St. James heart. Instead of chrome, black add-on parts provide a nice contrast. Inside, the colorful play continues. Each seat received leather in a different color, namely “Cumbrian Green”, “Imperial Blue”, “Newmarket Tan” and “Hotspur”. The steering wheel also features these leather colors. “Vivid Pink” was selected for the gearshift lever.

Bonhams auctions off the art car again

With his signature on the wooden panel above the glove box, Sir Peter Blake provided a true work of art. In addition, his autograph is embroidered into all four headrests. Next to door sill plates with the inscription “No. 1 of 1”, there is another special detail. A music playlist entirely to the artist’s taste is stored on the hard drive of the infotainment system. The completed car was auctioned off by Bonhams in aid of Care2Save as part of the Goodwood Festival of Speed 2016. To one British bidder, the Art Car was worth £ 250,000. In the first two years after his purchase, he covered 745 miles in the Bentley. To date, only 89 more have been added. Nevertheless, he attached great importance to regular maintenance, which was carried out at the Bentley dealer Harwoods in Pulborough. As part of the “British. Cool.” auction on March 3, Bonhams is auctioning the car again. This time it is expected to fetch between £ 300,000 and £ 400,000.

Images: Bonhams, Bentley