In the summer of 1994, internationally celebrated muralist Esther Nostokana Nagiyana Nikwambi Mahlangu (b. 1935, Mpumalanga, South Africa) visited Washington, DC, to create a mural in celebration of NMWA’s newly acquired addition, the Elizabeth A. Kasser Wing (which opened to the public in 1997). NMWA was the first institution in the United States to commission a mural by the artist.

The mural served as the centerpiece for the exhibition Esther Mahlangu, South African Muralist: The BMW Art Car and Related Works (September 15 to November 13, 1994), which displayed framed paintings by the artist, photographs of her working, and beaded objects.

Working outside with her son and a team of assistants from South Africa and the US, she transformed a three-story wall, now the exterior of the Museum Shop and annex, with vividly colored, geometric Ndebele patterns.

The exhibition also featured Mahlangu’s Art Car, a BMW 525i she painted with her signature colorful and geometric forms. BMW’s project started in 1975 when racecar driver Hervé Poulin invited Alexander Calder to paint his BMW racecar, sparking an ongoing collaboration with 20 artists. Mahlangu, who participated in 1991, was the first woman and first African artist invited to create an Art Car.