KYLE MURPHYStaff Writer

This past week the Tullahoma Fine Arts Center opened up “Lowbrow Meets Kustom Kulture,” its newest gallery for the month of June.

The exhibit consisted of artwork from artists Big Toe, Squindo, John Bell, Wes Core, Gary Mizar, Doug DoRr, Candy Weil, Max Grundy, Jeral Tidwell, Fritz Schenck, Daniel Brown, James Owens, Dwayne Vance, Kent Reppert II, Damian X Fulton and so on. The opening reception, held on Saturday, June 3, also featured special guest artist Gary Mizar, formerly of Ed “Big Daddy” Roth Studio.

According to Alan Mayes, curator and former editor for Car Kulture DeLuxe and Ol’ Skool Rodz magazines, lowbrow art is based on fantasy, hot rods, film noir and a little bit of other things that don’t fit in to the classical type of art. The visual art movement, also known as pop surrealism, got its start in Califorina in the late 1960s to 1970s.

“In Car Kulture DeLuxe, every issue we would feature a lowbrow artist,” Mayes said. “All of these pictures, with the exception of maybe one, came from those artists. They range from California to Ohio and we have a couple pieces from Japan.”

Mayes said Ol’ Skool Rodz was started up in 2003 and Car Kulture DeLuxe was bought around 2006. At the time, the hot rod and custom car magazines could be purchased in magazine stands at Barnes & Noble, Books-A-Million, Publix and so on, as well as buying a subscription. Mayes said the magazines were sold a few years ago and are switching to subscription based due to distribution issues.

The art on display is from Mayes’ collection and he said wanted to share them with the public. He said he hopes when people visit the gallery see art they haven’t seen before.

“Lowbrow Meets Kustom Kulture” will be featured at the Tullahoma Fine Arts Center until Saturday, June 24. The arts center is opened from Thursday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The Tullahoma Fine Arts Center is located at 401 S. Jackson St. For more information, visit tullahomaart.org.