It is certainly no coincidence that the entrepreneur couple Gabriela Unbehaun-Maier and Hermann Maier combined the themes of automobiles and art. Nor is it a coincidence that they also built an architecturally interesting museum for their passion. And because they did it right, the concept launched in 2013 was a success.
The second museum building, which opened on June 22/23, 2019, is now doubling down.
Architecture at the heart of
While architect Daniel Binder based the first building (Mac 1) on the rounded shape of the Hohentwiel volcanic mountain in Singen, the new second building (Mac 2) is more oriented towards the ruggedness of the rocks and the Hohentwiel fortress. Hermann Maier explains that the imposing building is intended to look like two huge boulders that have fallen down. He also points to the golden gate in the style of a pre-war automobile radiator, which is of course a reminder of the museum's purpose. The surroundings are also cited in the surface materials; small mirrors have been incorporated into the new building, which make the walls glitter impressively depending on the incidence of light.
The new museum building is five stories high and is located around 50 meters away from Mac 1. Whereas Mac 1 had space for a maximum of 7 to 8 cars, a significantly higher number can now be distributed across the floors, which are fully accessible via a large transport elevator. This makes the "car" theme much more prominent.
Art and cars
It is mainly artists from the surrounding area and from southern Germany who like to be shown at the MAC. But it is always the combinations with the automobile that make the constantly changing exhibitions so appealing. Vehicles and works of art are always brought together on specific themes, such as in winter 2014/2015 with "Andy Warhol, Cars", when Warhol paintings were shown together with portraits of Mercedes-Benz cars.
A year later, Herbert Vogt's paintings were associated with the BMW Art Cars. And the exhibition "Color, Form, Speed" showed streamlined cars with works by Hermann Wiehl.
The new Mac 2 currently houses an exhibition of vehicles by Bizzarrini, as well as cars by his contemporaries, such as Peter Monteverdi. Photographs by Schlegelmilch and Dino/Werner Eisele hang on the walls.
Extremely modern
It is not only the architecture of the new museum building that is modern, the furnishings also show where exhibition technology is heading. For example, projectors can project images onto the walls across several floors, so that the cars on display are always shown in a new light and pattern.
Every visitor is impressed when the huge fishes then sweep across the walls.
A video installation currently lasts around 45 minutes and shows several elements from the waterfall to the "transforming man", some of which were commissioned and some of which were developed by light artist Markus Brenner himself.
The exhibits are largely shown in semi-darkness or near-darkness because the Maiers learned from experimenting with a dark room in Mac 1 that this type of presentation resonates with the public.
More than just a museum
With Mac 2, the Museum Art & Cars is also taking a huge step forward as an event center. Weddings, book launches, customer events, vehicle presentations and much more can be held in the various rooms. A unique atmosphere is guaranteed.
In addition, the access road and parking area have been extended as a by-product of the new museum section, so to speak, so that classic car club events or the start or finish of a classic car rally can now also be organized at the MAC.
A bistro/café was already opened with Mac 1, which impresses with fine wines and tastefully prepared meals.
Driven by enthusiasm
You can immediately sense that the team around Mr. and Mrs. Maier are very enthusiastic about their work. Many of them work on a largely voluntary basis, such as Christoph Karle, who normally works as a criminal police officer in Constance to improve security, but is able to indulge his passion for beautiful and special cars as a curator at the Art & Cars Museum. In his spare time, he even travels to Sweden to pick up a rare Borgward 1500, which then stands in the museum for a while and "tells" its special story.
After all, the MAC is organized as a foundation with the aim of making the approximately 3,000 works of the Southwest German Art Foundation accessible to the public.
The fact that an impressive extension of around 3000 square meters can now be opened after just six years shows how much dedication there is among everyone involved. And the fact that the Maiers can still be found in the museum almost every day and lend a hand themselves when needed shows that this is about a true love of cars and art.
The official opening hours are Wednesday to Friday afternoons, with the doors opening a little earlier at weekends. More information can of course be found on the museum's website, where information on the individual exhibitions is also published.
A visit is definitely recommended, especially if you want to escape from everyday life for a few moments and enjoy the individual exhibitions and exhibits without time pressure.
