Two decades ago, Los Angeles-based Japanese artist Hero Yamagata was seeking legitimacy in the museum world. At that point, he was mostly known as a wealthy commercial silkscreen artist with a lot of celebrity acquaintances, including Elizabeth Taylor and the poet Allen Ginsberg. So he embarked upon an outrageous project to use fully restored classic 1950s Mercedes vehicles as his canvas. He reportedly completed about 20 of them to the tune of about $3 million. One of them was recently available on eBay.
The series of art cars dates back to a widely publicized 1994 exhibit at L.A.’s struggling Municipal Art Gallery. At the time, Yamagata told The Los Angeles Times, “I have tried to show my work in museums, but everyone says, 'You are too commercial' or, 'You are a shopping-center artist.'" (Think of Yamagata as a lesser-known LeRoy Neiman.)
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Hiro Yamagata was born in 1948 in Japan. He lived in Europe in his youth, and is now based in car-obsessed Los Angeles. Yamagata is mostly known for his use of extremely vibrant colors in cityscapes, celebrity portraits and popular topical themes. He is also regarded as a pioneer in the use of laser and hologram technology in art. His works are now represented in museum collections throughout the world.
For the 1994 L.A. show, six vintage automobiles were acquired, restored, and painted white. Then Yamagata and about 20 assistants painted fanciful natural designs, based on photographs of nature that the artist took in Fiji. It was a mashup of Daimler and Gauguin.
The series called “Earthly Paradise,” grew to about 20 cars, including the 1952 Mercedes-Benz Cabriolet 220A that was listed on eBay. The lush painting completely covering the car’s body depicts flowers and butterflies.
Sam Hunter, the late New York Times art critic, said that Yamagata “reversed the symbol of the car as an industrial, automated machine and brought it into harmony with nature. He has transformed it into a magical art object through his poetic vision.” According to the seller, the art Benz is drivable.
Bradley Berman is a leading writer and researcher about electric cars and green transportation. He regularly contributes driving reviews and technology articles to The New York Times, Fortune, MIT Technology Review, Popular Mechanics, and other publications.
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