Renault Twingo E-Tech 2026 Transformed into Comic Book Art

From April 8th to 13th, 2026, American artist Joshua Vides took over the Renault showroom at 53, avenue des Champs-Élysées to transform a Renault Twingo E-Tech electric into a living work of art. With his signature black and white comic book style, he covered the bodywork in thick lines and stark contrasts, leaving passersby wondering: drawing or real car? The result is on display until June 9th, 2026, before joining the Renault Collection.

"You almost expect the bodywork to crumple like a simple sheet of paper." — Mobiwisy

When a Twingo Becomes a Giant Sketch

For five days, Parisians stopped in front of the window at 53 Champs-Élysées, convinced they were looking at an illustration straight out of a sketchbook. The thick outlines, flat black areas, marker-drawn shadows—everything conspired to trick the eye. And yet, it's a real Twingo E-Tech electric sitting on its four wheels, not a sketch taped to the window.

Joshua Vides worked live, in front of the public, during two open sessions. No remote spray painting: the artist applies his graphic language by hand, line by line, to the actual bodywork. The kind of performance you don't expect to see in a car showroom.

What Joshua Vides Actually Does

His thing is "cel-shading"—a technique borrowed from cartoons and video games where volumes are replaced by bold black outlines and uniform color zones. Applied to a real car, the effect is disorienting: three-dimensional shapes disappear in favor of graphic lines, and the object seems to shift from the real world into fiction.

On the Twingo, every bodywork edge, every panel joint, every door handle has been outlined. The result? A city car that looks like a comic book panel come to life. According to Mobiwisy, "the illusion of depth is completely subverted: volumes fade away in favor of bold graphic lines."

Renault and Contemporary Art: A Habit

This isn't the first time Renault has handed its models over to artists. The brand has been doing this type of collaboration since 2021 according to Auto Plus. We remember the WT5 Show performance at the Centre Pompidou for the launch of the R5, or the Festiv4L for the R4. The Twingo follows in this line—Renault clearly treats its city cars as canvases, not just products to sell.

The car will then join the Renault Collection, alongside other similar projects. So not just a fleeting marketing stunt: a piece that will have a real museum life.

What's the Real Twingo Hiding Under the Marker Lines?

Because we're still talking about a real car, here's what Renault's electric city car knows how to do outside of its comic book costume. The interior of the Twingo 2026 offers real physical controls—buttons, steering wheel paddles to adjust regeneration, readable dials. Autocar UK notes an attention to detail you don't often find in this segment: a Twingo typeface embossed in the headliner, a 50-liter underfloor trunk compartment to store charging cables without unloading your stuff.

The trunk offers 360 to 1,010 liters depending on the rear seat configuration, which slide independently by about 17 cm each. For a city car, that's frankly generous. The rear seats remain two, not three, but they adapt by playing the compromise between legroom and trunk volume.

Where to See It Before It Disappears?

The Joshua Vides version Twingo is on view until June 9, 2026 at 53, avenue des Champs-Élysées in Paris. Free entry, no appointment needed. If you're in the area, it's worth a detour—if only to test the illusion for yourself and watch your brain try to decide.