It might seem an oddity to travel all the way to Paris and then take time to see a car collection owned by American designer Ralph Lauren. But this summer's exhibition The Art of the Automobile, Masterpieces from the Ralph Lauren Collection at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs on the Rue du Rivoli is one of the public's rare opportunities to view a few gems from the designer's vaunted cache of vintage automobiles.

Lauren, who has been collecting exotic cars since 1961, keeps them under lock and key in his private garage in Westchester County, N.Y., the structure far more museum than storage facility. As Wallpaper magazine described it, "Inside, thanks to design input from the Polo Ralph Lauren interiors team, the collection is displayed in a truly reverent fashion, part Zen garden, part Rothko Room, with every car placed on a carefully lit pedestal, yet kept maintained and primed for instant use."

Only in 2005 were a number of the cars presented for public viewing in an exhibition at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts. Occasionally, Lauren enters his rolling steeds in the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance or the Fairfield County Concours in Westport, Conn., giving those attending an up-close look at the glorious wheels.

But this summer in Paris, through Aug. 28, visitors can view first-hand 17 of Lauren's finest autos, all of European provenance. In the grand museum setting, the rich design of the cars is truly understood as art form, "a beauty forged by the quest for speed and performance," as the museum guide explains. "The automobile is considered here as a major art in its own right: for splendor of its forms, colors, materials and design, but also the magical beauty shaped by the quest for efficiency and precision."

On a recent Sunday afternoon, car enthusiasts were queuing up along the Rue du Rivoli waiting for entry to the museum and the rich and rare encounters with such prized autos as the 1938 Bugatti 57 SC Atlantic or the 1929 "Blower" Bentley and Jaguar D-type.

The dazzling display of museum-perfect autos includes a number of stunners from Bugatti, Mercedes, Ferrari, McLaren and Porsche. The cars were selected by the museum's curator, Rodolphe Rapetti, who interviewed Lauren about his quest for ownership of the world's most intriguing cars.

If you can't make it to Paris this summer, you might want to check out the hour-long Discovery Channel special on Lauren's collection, Speed, Style and Beauty: The Ralph Lauren Collection airing July 6.