The Kansas City Kansas Community College Art Gallery is hosting a closing reception for its current exhibition “Low ‘n’ Slow: The History of Lowriders and the Artistic Process,” curated by Erek Erazo and Shai Perry-McCallister. The exhibit explores the historical impact of the lowrider car on artmaking processes. The reception is from 6 to 9 p.m. Sept. 13 in the art gallery, which is in the lower level of the Jewell Building on the KCKCC Main Campus, 7250 State Ave. The exhibit runs through Sept. 19.
The exhibit features Thomas Lomeli’s sculptural work and custom bikes by students from the Olathe School District, in partnership with USD 333, the Lowrider Bike Club and the Diverse One’s Car Club with featured photography by Christopher Erazo. Erazo’ s company, Brown Boy Media, captures the uniqueness and energy of the lowrider and Chicano culture through candid photography and videography. He began filming on a vintage VHS camera that captures Chicano culture, and the videos on display in the gallery are of lowrider shows, including lowrider hopping, the community and lowrider bikes. Erazo’s work has been featured in an exhibit in Mexico City and some video clips have been used on 41 Action News. One of Erazo’s photographs will be on a traveling exhibit in the Smithsonian Museum in Washington D.C.
The exhibit also includes three large vessels created by Lomeli, which were crafted from stoneware and decorated with candy paint and glitter. Lomeli engages themes of identity as a Chicano artist in his artwork by exploring connections between Mesoamerican sculpture and modern lowrider aesthetics.
There are also seven custom lowrider bikes created by high school students from the Leadership Lowrider Bike Club. The club was established in 2017 in the Olathe School District, where their mission is to continue to help students find a sense of belonging and support both socially and academically. The program allows students to receive weekly mentoring, community service and cultural identity development through the lowrider community all while building custom bikes that they earn upon high school graduation. The chapter currently partners with local art museums to display various custom bikes including a tricycle designed for the Olathe Fire Department, which is on display in the exhibit, and the Johnson County Museum.
For more information on the exhibition or events, contact Shai Perry-McCallister, coordinator of the KCKCC Art Gallery, at sperry@kckcc.edu.