Carros y Cultura: Lowriding Legacies in Texas will open at the Bullock Texas State History Museum on Saturday, May 11. The bilingual exhibition highlights the rich culture of Texas lowriding communities through artifacts, interactive experiences, and lowrider cars and bicycles from San Antonio, Austin, Dallas, Houston, Laredo, Pecos and more.
Lowriding started with the Mexican American community in California after World War II as an expression of cultural identity. Drivers began customizing their cars with elaborate artistry and low-to-the-ground frames. The cars soon became tied to the Chicano civil rights movement and cities began passing laws restricting car height. Those laws led to innovative hydraulic systems, allowing cars to be raised and lowered, which became the defining feature of lowrider vehicles. Following a lowrider culture resurgence in the 1970s, formal car shows grew into a competitive sport, bringing new audiences and making a lasting impact on the automotive industry. Today, lowriding competitions and car clubs are found all over the world.
Immensely creative and endlessly kind, Texas lowriders stand out among a larger car culture that is admired and imitated worldwide,
said Kathryn Siefker, senior curator at the Bullock Museum. The Bullock Museum is honored to spotlight the Texas lowriding community and to share its rich legacy.
Carros y Cultura introduces visitors to the rich culture of Texas lowriding through a display of seven lowrider cars, five bicycles, and artifacts from music, fashion and lowrider history. The word 'lowrider' can describe a car: low to the ground, usually having hydraulics, with a fantastic paint job, chrome, and customized upholstery. More importantly, lowrider refers to people: those who own the cars, work on them, show them in competition, take them cruising, and champion the culture. Together, car and driver maintain a legacy that has been nurtured across generations.
Lowrider cars featured in the exhibition include a gold-plated '63 Chevy Impala, a pristine example of one of the most iconic lowrider vehicles. Also on display will be a 1986 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme customized with a mural of famed Mexican ranchera singer Vicente Fernandez. An array of lowrider bicycles on view includes a 1972 Schwinn Fastback customized as an homage to a Texas staple, Whataburger, complete with gold-plated french fries and an airbrushed mural of a neighborhood Whataburger restaurant on the bike seat. Visitors can meet the people who make lowriding a community through first-person interviews while exploring the elements that give lowriders their distinct look, feel and culture through interactive displays.
Programs and events celebrating lowriding culture in Texas will be offered throughout the run of the exhibition, including talks with experts, children's activities and teen workshops. On July 7, the Museum will celebrate the exhibition at H-E-B Free First Sunday, with free exhibit admission from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and lowrider-themed activities from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Carros y Cultura: Lowriding Legacies in Texas is a bilingual exhibition, presented in both English and Spanish. It will be on view at the Bullock Museum from May 11 to September 2, 2024. For more information, visit TheStoryofTexas.com/lowriders.
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Bullock Texas State History Museum
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