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The gravity-defying customized cars known as lowriders started out in Mexican American communities of the western United States and now have inspired lowrider clubs in Asia and South America. VOA Correspondent Scott Stearns takes us to an art show inspired by lowrider design.]]
LanguageEnglish
Transcript/Script EnglishUSAGM SHARE
((PLAYBOOK SLUG: US – LOWRIDERS ART
HEADLINE: US Art Show Inspired by Lowriders
TEASER: 'Desert Rider: Dreaming in Motion' opens at Denver Art Museum
PUBLISHED AT: 07/21/2023 at 9am
BYLINE: Scott Stearns
DATELINE: Denver
VIDEOGRAPHER: Scott Stearns
VIDEO EDITOR:
SCRIPT EDITORS: Megan Duzor, Reifenrath
VIDEO SOURCE (S): All VOA
PLATFORMS (mark with X): WEB __ TV _X_ RADIO _X_
TRT: 2:25
VID APPROVED BY: MAS
TYPE: TVPKG
EDITOR NOTES: Separate Lyall and Cabrera in Spanish in the clear))
((INTRO:))
[[The gravity-defying customized cars known as lowriders started out in Mexican American communities of the western United States and now have inspired lowrider clubs in Asia and South America. VOA Correspondent Scott Stearns takes us to an art show inspired by lowrider design.]]
((NARRATOR))
((Please check opening nats. It seems we should hear the lowrider car that is doing its moves, instead of crowd noise.))
Lowriders and lovers of the low and slow rides helped open a new exhibit at the Denver Art Museum. It is a show about reimagining vehicles from the landscape of the American Southwest, including lowriders, skateboards and horses, says curator Victoria Lyall.
((Victoria Lyall, Denver Art Museum))
“These transformations and customizations allow them to express who they are and pride in where they are from.”
((NARRATOR))
That includes Native American artists who see skateboarding on Indigenous land as an act of sovereignty, and Latino artists who customize horse saddles in celebration of the flamboyance of Mexican rodeo.
Artist Margarita Cabrera says her soft sculpture cascade of small, beat-up vehicles reflects the conditions of lower-paid auto workers on the Mexican side of the Texas border.
((Margarita Cabrera, Artist))
“You have this sort of anthropomorphic quality that exists on each piece, meaning it represents a body that seems exhausted, that seems like it’s falling apart, tired, losing structure.”
((NARRATOR))
((1:15 in, nats is a little too loud, complete’s with Scott’s narration))
The star of Armando Geneyro’s photo “When Heaven Scrapes the Pavement” is a rebuilt 1948 Chevy Fleetline – which owner Joe O’Connell showed off outside.
((Joe O’Connell, Ranflitas Car Club))
“It’s my passion. I put everything I have into it. I bought it about seven years ago. Since then, I’ve redone the whole car.”
((NARRATOR))
The community of car clubs at the exhibit opening mirrors the Daniel Salazar photograph “Westside Dreams” that depicts Denver lowrider enthusiasts in 1979.
((Joe O’Connell, Ranflitas Car Club))
“We got together because of cars, but we stay together and hang out because we’re family. That’s what we are about: family, respect, unity, and we just like to share our passion to everybody who is here, like today, to bring these cars out. It’s a dying art. You don’t see these cars restored. So that’s what we are doing, bringing them back to life for the younger generations who don’t see it, haven’t ever seen it, and hopefully keep it alive for future generations.”
((NARRATOR))
The exhibit "Desert Rider: Dreaming in Motion" runs through the end of September.
((Scott Stearns, VOA News, Denver))
NewsML Media TopicsArts, Culture, Entertainment and Media
NetworkVOA
Embargo DateJuly 21, 2023 09:00 EDT
Brand / Language ServiceVoice of America - English
