The North Carolina Museum of Art (NCMA) will open “Rolling Sculpture: Art Deco Cars from the 1930s and ’40s” on October 1, 2016, guest curated by renowned automotive journalist Ken Gross. Featuring 14 cars and three motorcycles embodying the design characteristics of the art deco movement, the exhibition, will run through January 15, 2017.

The art deco period, known for blending modern decorative arts and industrial design, is synonymous today with luxury and glamour, and the cars from this time are no exception. While manufacturers strive for economy and efficiency today, elegance reigned supreme during the art deco period. With bold, sensuous shapes, hand-crafted details, and luxurious finishes, the cars and motorcycles in “Rolling Sculpture: Art Deco Cars from the 1930s and ’40s” provide stunning examples of car design at its peak.

“These exquisite cars—several of which are truly one-of-a-kind—show what can happen when an automaker’s imagination takes the wheel,” says Gross. “There were absolutely no limitations or constraints placed on design, and it shows beautifully. This exhibition is a perfect demonstration of the intersection of art and cars, and the title ‘Rolling Sculpture’ could not be more accurate.”


Peugeot 402 Darl’mat Coupe, 1936, Jim Patterson / Patterson Collection;
Photo ©2016 Michael Furman

Highlights of the exhibit include:

• A one-of-a-kind aluminum-bodied Speedster hand-built for Edsel Ford in 1934 when he was President of Ford Motor Company.

• A Figoni and Falaschi Delahaye “Salon De Paris” Roadster that was lost in Algeria for decades, then recovered and restored in Switzerland.

• One of five surviving Stout Scarabs, an aircraft-inspired, beetle-shaped Depression-era precursor of the modern minivan.

• The legendary Bugatti Aérolithe, a streamlined, magnesium-bodied sports coupe that looks as though Jules Verne designed it.

• The radical, fully enclosed BMW R7 Concept motorcycle, hidden in a crate in 1935 and discovered 70 years later.

• The Chrysler Imperial Airflow, inspired by high-speed passenger trains—a car so advanced, it scared the public and nearly put Chrysler out of business.

• One of three surviving Pierce-Arrow Silver Arrows, the art moderne star of the 1933 Chicago Century of Progress exposition.

• The last Ruxton of only 96 built, a stunning, low-roofed sedan with an unusual layered paint scheme by interior designer Joseph Urban.

In the galleries the cars and motorcycles will be categorized and interpreted based on three themes: Art Deco, Streamlining, and Yesterday’s Car of the Future.

“These categories help bring historical and cultural context to the cars and motorcycles featured in the exhibition,” says Caroline Rocheleau, NCMA coordinating curator of Rolling Sculpture. “Many people know a little something about the 1930s but might not be familiar with the automobiles of that era. We hope visitors enjoy learning about the connection of the cars to the art world, their innovative engineering and design, and the reasons these automobiles, hailed as the ‘cars of the future,’ are not seen on the road today.”

For more information on the exhibition and to see an image slideshow of featured automobiles, visit ncartmuseum.org.