There are many cars with original and aesthetic decoration, as the colours and shapes on a body serve to 'identify' a car and make it remarkable. But cars with a livery borrowed from the art world, or even used as artistic objects, are less numerous. In endurance racing, the 24 Hours of Le Mans has featured original creations since the 1970s.

From the pioneering 'psychedelic' Porsche 917 to modern GTs and prototypes, a lineage was created. The Morgan-Nissan LMP2 Art Car seen at Le Mans in 2013, created by sculptor Costa, has a strong place in this family. 

A tribute to the 24 Hours of Le Mans by the French Artist Fernando Costa

Since the first Art Cars, it is often great names who bring their vision to the automobile. This may be because they want to find a new and different medium, or because they want to continue their work. The American sculptor and painter Alexander Calder launched the movement in 1975 with BMW, followed by Frank Stella and Roy Lichtenstein, one of the most important American pop artists. 

Andy Warhol also contributed to the history of the Art Car at Le Mans, in a BMW M1 entered in 1979. César's McLaren F1 GTR or the Porsche 911 GT2 receiving a work of art by the cartoonist Georges Wolinski marked the 90s. Jeff Koons' BMW (Le Mans 2010) and the Porsche liveries of the Flying Lizard, Prospeed and IMSA Performance teams, not forgetting the JMW Motorsport Ferraris, have all had the privilege of being 'works of art'. Prototypes are less numerous.

The Morgan-Nissan LMP2 belongs to this category. It has been honoured with the title of "Official Art Car of the 90th anniversary of the 24 Hours of Le Mans" by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO). The work was officially presented on 9 June 2013,  on the Test Day of the Le Mans event. 

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Fernando Costa's work as an artist and welder

In the presentation file of the work at the time of its unveiling, one could learn more about its meaning and the artist's vision: "Costa's welded panels often tell stories, with humour, at the confluence of several artistic currents, the New Realists, Pop Art and Street Art. Sometimes figurative, sometimes abstract, his works call out by their construction and the prominent place given to colour. Costa gives new life to these urban materials, which are both an integral part of our daily lives and a universal language. His works are in his image, both raw and full of subtlety. The Morgan thus displayed signs that we all know, but also the names of several sections of the circuit (Arnage, Hunaudières, Indianapolis, Mulsanne, etc.). 

A unique work... or rather a double one.

From a racing car to a sculpture...

Costa's Art Car is based on an LMP2 that took part in the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The chassis was used to accommodate the signage that is characteristic of Costa's work. 1,000 rivets, 20,000 welding points, 120 kilos of sheet metal and 250 kilos of enamel plates were needed to assemble this patchwork. The original LMP2 chassis, which weighed almost 400 kilos and became a work of art, could not be raced for obvious safety and performance reasons.

...and from a sculpture to a racing car

It was therefore decided to faithfully reproduce the work on the Morgan-Nissan LMP2 (chassis 01-17). But this time with modern adhesive films, so that the car would be at the start.

Several partners were involved to ensure that the artwork was reproduced perfectly, giving the LMP2 the opportunity to enter the big race. This work was carried out in part thanks to the Dassault Systèmes Design Studio, a creative space that brings together designers, graphic artists and 3D creators. The company Hexis was responsible for producing an adhesive film in the image of the sculpture to perfectly cover the bodywork of the LM P2 race car.

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A successful racing history and official Art Car of the 90th anniversary of the 24 Hours of Le Mans 

What makes the Morgan-LMP2 Art Car so exceptional is of course its livery and its Art Car title, but it is also its track record that gives it real credibility. The car was not only prepared for the 24 Hours of Le Mans but in 2012 it was entered by the Conquest Endurance team run by Eric Bachelart in the USA, it has competed in all American Le Mans Series (ALMS) races. Sebring, Laguna Seca, Road America or Petit Le Mans, the first life of chassis 17 was American and was crowned with success with a 3rd place in scratch and two victories in LMP2 as well as three 4th positions in scratch.

Back in Europe, it was given a season in the World Endurance Championship (WEC) in 2013. Silverstone, Spa-Francorchamps, Interlagos and Fuji welcomed her.

At the 24 Hours of Le Mans of 2013, the Morgan became the official Art Car of the 90th anniversary of the mythical race.  The No. 45 was entrusted to a team of gentlemen drivers: Jean-Marc Merlin, Philippe Mondolot and Jacques Nicolet. In an original touch, Philippe Mondolot had a new helmet made for the 24 Hours of Le Mans, which included part of the artwork. This work was carried out by Amato Design.

Acquired by one of the car's drivers in December 2013, and kept in his collection, the Costa Art car was acquired by Ascott Collection in March 2022 who entered it at Sport & Collection in June 2022, where it took part in demonstrations on the Le Vigeant circuit.

This sublime Art Car is now available for sale to enrich a collection of Le Mans cars or to be entered in historic races

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Racing History:

17/03/2012 - Sebring 12 Hours - (ALMS) – 44th - Martin Plowman / David Heinemeier Hansson / Jan Heylen – n°37

14/04/2012 - Long Beach - (ALMS) - 17th - Martin Plowman / David Heinemeier Hansson

12/05/2012 - Laguna Seca 6 Hours - (ALMS) - 20th - Martin Plowman / David Heinemeier Hansson / Antonio Pizzonia

07/07/2012 - Lime Rock - (ALMS) - 4th - Martin Plowman / David Heinemeier Hansson

22/07/2012 – Mosport - (ALMS) – 3rd winner LMP2 - Martin Plowman / David Heinemeier Hansson

04/08/2012 - Mid-Ohio - (ALMS) - 4th - Martin Plowman / David Heinemeier Hansson

18/08/2012 - Road America 4 Hours - (ALMS) - 4th winner LMP2 - Martin Plowman / David Heinemeier Hansson

01/09/2012 - Baltimore 2 Hours - (ALMS) - 26th - Martin Plowman / David Heinemeier Hansson

15/09/2012 - Virginia 4 Hours - (ALMS) – 4th - Martin Plowman / David Heinemeier Hansson

20/10/2012 - Petit Le Mans - (ALMS) - disqualified (non-respect of pilotage time) - Martin Plowman / David Heinemeier Hansson / Eric Lux

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14/04/2013 – 6 Hours of Silverstone – (WEC) – 27th - Jacques Nicolet / Jean-Marc Merlin – (n°45)

04/05/2013 – 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps – (WEC) – 13th - Jacques Nicolet / Jean-Marc Merlin – (n°45)

09/06/2013 – Le Mans Test Day – (WEC) – 26th - Jacques Nicolet / Jean-Marc Merlin / Philippe Mondolot – (n°45)

23/06/2013 – 24 Heures du Mans - (WEC) – Art car - abandon - Jacques Nicolet / Jean-Marc Merlin / Philippe Mondolot – (n°45)

01/09/2013 – 6 Hours of Interlagos - (WEC) – Art car- 8th - Jacques Nicolet / Keiko Ihara / Jean-Marc Merlin - (n°45)

22/09/2013 – 6 Hours of Austin - (WEC) – Art car- 25th - Jacques Nicolet / Jean-Marc Merlin / Erik Maris - (n°45)

20/10/2013 – 6 Hours of Fuji - (WEC) – Art car- 12th - Jacques Nicolet - (n°45)

10/11/2013 – 6 Hours of Shanghai - (WEC) – Art car- 10th - David Cheng / Keiko Ihara / Jacques Nicolet - (n°45)

30/11/2013 – 6 Hours of Bahrain - (WEC) – Art car- 7th - David Cheng / Keiko Ihara / Jacques Nicolet - (n°45)

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