Multi-storey car parks, car dealerships, car museums and underground garages are not places one normally associates with art and design. The fact is however that over the past 15 years, the most famous names on the international architectural scene have thrown themselves into this area or been commissioned by farsighted clients. One of the reasons is the acceleration of life in our cities. We use the city more frequently, more quickly and for shorter periods. Many people drive in and must park their vehicle somewhere. The existing car parks however were cheerless and dirty, more the stuff of nightmares than a pleasant urban space. In brief: a real revolution was required. The car parks were taken away from the engineers of the planning authorities and placed in the hands of architects and designers. And what happened? Bright halls were created underneath the ground; spaces reminiscent of banqueting halls or even cathedrals. Architects created parking towers that adorn the new cities like Doric columns of glass. Car showrooms were created which were so bold, so breathtakingly courageous that it is almost as if the architects had found a field in which they could finally put the real, new architecture of the 21st century to the test.