Virgil Abloh and Mercedes-Benz Donate $160K from Sale of G-Class Collaboration

Alongside Virgil Abloh and Mercedes-Benz’s announcement of their collaborative Project Geländewagen in September, they also revealed that the one-of-a-kind G-Class would be sold at auction with Sotheby’s.

On Oct. 2, the car was included in the auction house’s Contemporary Curated collection, where it sold for $160,000. Before the car came to life, Abloh and Benz were intent on donating the funds to a charity that supports the art, saying they felt “compelled to help support the arts and the international creative community at a critical time.”

The entire $160,000 has gone to Abloh’s “Post-Modern” Scholarship Fund, which he launched earlier this year as a way to uplift emerging fashion students who are of Black, African-American, or African descent.

In addition to the G-Class, Sotheby’s also auctioned off three works chose by Abloh and Gordon Wagener, his collaborative partner at Mercedes-Ben for the Contemporary Curated collection. Wagner selected pieces by Kenneth Noland, Helen Frankenthaler, and Gerhard Richter, and Virgil Abloh brought attention to the work of three Black artists: Barkley L. Hendricks, Kerry James Marshall, and Rashid Johnson.

“Now more than ever those of us who have voices and have opened doors need to keep them open, and make sure that the conversation includes the youth,” Abloh said in a press release. “This is what we’re working to achieve through my Post Modern Scholarship fund. Everything that I’ve done in my career has been to pave the way for the next generation, and now with the help of Mercedes-Benz we’re able to take that one step further.”