Date/Time
Date(s) - 09/07/2017
4:30 pm
Add event to your calendar
Opening Reception
Open to the Public | Free Admission
Take a ride into the creative reimaginings of American steel as captured in photographs, Lowriders, Hoppers, and Hot Rods: New Mexico History Museum Photo Exhibit, opening September 7th (through October 5, 2017) at the McCray Gallery focuses on mobile works of art and their makers—home-grown Nuevomexicanos who customize, detail, paint and upholster these favorite symbols of Hispanic culture.
Photo Curator Daniel Kosharek has pulled together an extensive collection of images by Don Usner, Annie Sahlin, Jack Parsons, Sam Adams, Norman Mauskopf, Dottie Lopez, Gabriela Campos, Meridel Rubinstein and others.
It’s all part of an American love affair with the internal combustion engine and the glimmering accoutrements that these vehicles have inspired through history,” said Kosharek, whose own first car was a 1957 Chevy two-door hardtop in matchstick color—royal blue on bottom, baby blue on top.
The term “lowrider” refers to either a car whose suspension has been lowered to inches from the ground or the person who drives it. In Spanish, it’s bajito y suavecito, or low and slow. Lowriders, the cars, are built as works of art, expressions of faith, to honor the dead, bring families together, center a marriage and, most important, provide a proud ride. Lowriders, the drivers, require the skills of an engineer, the aesthetic of an artist, and the patience of a monk to create highly personalized, one-of-a-kind, mobile expressions.
Sponsors
Funded in part by New Mexico History Museum; New Mexico Culture Squared (NMC2), NM Department of Cultural Affairs (DCA) project run by AMP Concerts, and WNMU Office of Cultural Affairs
Photo by Meridel Rubenstein