Photo: Hemmings.com
After it was closed for more than a year and 90 million dollars have been invested into its renovation, the Petersen Automotive Museum reopened in Los Angeles.
The big reopening has been possible thanks to some car enthusiasts that happen to have a lot of money and wanted to bring back the museum to its former glory by rebuilding it from the ground up.
The first major change that can be easily seen is the exterior, which is now wrapped with 308 undulating steel ribbons and painted in hot-rod red, a color that for sure excites every car guy’s imagination.
Inside, 25 new galleries contained in three themed floors await for the visitors to see how cars are built, raced and adored thanks to multimedia exhibits. Along with cutting-edge projectors, speakers and lighting, ten racing simulators put users on a virtual race track in an entertaining room.
The museum was created in the 1960’s by Margie and Robert E. Petersen, after they transformed an old department store into what would in time become the Petersen Automotive Museum, one of the most important car museums in the U.S.
The new era started back in 2013, when Peter Mullin, a well-known businessman who invests large amounts of money mostly in exotic French cars, rejoined as chairman of the Petersen museum and decided it was time for a big change. Mullin also shared his private collection of cars with the Petersen, which includes, among others, two of the most beautiful cars in the world, the Talbot-Lago 150 and a Bugatti Atlantique, according to Fortune.
Another car enthusiast involved in the museum’s renovation is Bruce Meyer. His gallery will open with an exhibit called Precious Metal, in which visitors can admire the most expensive car gathering in the museum’s history. Some of the examples cost tens of millions each and the total value of the cars is $120 million.
The newest member of the Peterson board is Michael Armand Hammer, who also shared his private car collection consisting of cars used as canvasses for art. Some legendary vehicles that can be seen in this exhibition are the BMW Art Cars, beginning with those by David Hockney and Alexander Calder.
On top of it all, the Petersen Museum teamed up with Pixar Animation Studios, the creators of “Cars,” for a new interactive exhibition called the Cars Mechanical Institute, which will explain things like how brakes, engines or suspension work.
The first major change that can be easily seen is the exterior, which is now wrapped with 308 undulating steel ribbons and painted in hot-rod red, a color that for sure excites every car guy’s imagination.
Inside, 25 new galleries contained in three themed floors await for the visitors to see how cars are built, raced and adored thanks to multimedia exhibits. Along with cutting-edge projectors, speakers and lighting, ten racing simulators put users on a virtual race track in an entertaining room.
The museum was created in the 1960’s by Margie and Robert E. Petersen, after they transformed an old department store into what would in time become the Petersen Automotive Museum, one of the most important car museums in the U.S.
The new era started back in 2013, when Peter Mullin, a well-known businessman who invests large amounts of money mostly in exotic French cars, rejoined as chairman of the Petersen museum and decided it was time for a big change. Mullin also shared his private collection of cars with the Petersen, which includes, among others, two of the most beautiful cars in the world, the Talbot-Lago 150 and a Bugatti Atlantique, according to Fortune.
Another car enthusiast involved in the museum’s renovation is Bruce Meyer. His gallery will open with an exhibit called Precious Metal, in which visitors can admire the most expensive car gathering in the museum’s history. Some of the examples cost tens of millions each and the total value of the cars is $120 million.
The newest member of the Peterson board is Michael Armand Hammer, who also shared his private car collection consisting of cars used as canvasses for art. Some legendary vehicles that can be seen in this exhibition are the BMW Art Cars, beginning with those by David Hockney and Alexander Calder.
On top of it all, the Petersen Museum teamed up with Pixar Animation Studios, the creators of “Cars,” for a new interactive exhibition called the Cars Mechanical Institute, which will explain things like how brakes, engines or suspension work.
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