Car Culture
Every spring the Albuquerque Museum hosts the annual Classic Auto Show. When I first attended it, I discovered an entire subculture of car devotees. Like the region’s long-standing heritage of the creation of Santos figures, the rich tradition of Southwestern folk art influences their approach. With enormous passion and pride, and with discriminating attention to detail, these old cars are celebrated and honored through their restoration.
My photographs are an amalgam of the artistic urge: the automotive designers’ original work, the Southwestern folk artists’ caring restoration, and my photographic bent to see through a lens of abstraction. The result are images that are a blend of cultural heritages and eras. They demonstrate that we have more in common than we have differences.
