Best in Low Explores the Community, Culture, and Craftsmanship of Lowriders

Although it has spread around the world, the culture surrounding highly customized and personalized lowriders began in Southern California. It’s only fitting that the Petersen Automotive Museum, the premier automotive museum in Los Angeles, pays homage to the vivid paint, ornate engraving, and luxurious interiors of lowriders. Best in Low: Lowrider Icons of the Street and Show, a wonderfully curated exhibit, takes up most of the museum’s ground floor as it spills into the lobby and into the parking structure. Bicycles, motorcycles, trucks, and more than a dozen cars were selected to showcase the spectrum of lowrider customization, and each of the vehicles is a brilliant representative.

“The lowrider displays are always a fan favorite, and we are excited to open the most comprehensive lowrider exhibit in the museum’s history,” said Petersen Automotive Museum executive director Terry L. Karges. “This exhibit celebrates the rich history of lowriders and will give visitors the opportunity to learn about their impact on the automotive world, the culture at large, and the history of car customization.”

This is not the first time the Petersen has highlighted lowriders, as several examples of the genre could be found in past exhibits celebrating a variety of custom styles, and the Vault also seemed always to have at least one piece of lowrider eye candy to explore. This current exhibit, however, is the first of its kind since the Petersen’s total renovation and reopening in December 2015. The scale of the exhibit, combined with the artwork and the information provided, makes for a stunning and intriguing display.

“This lowrider exhibit will be a new chapter exploring the craftsmanship of lowriders and the impact of this culture on the customization scene,” said Dr. Denise Sandoval, guest curator at the Petersen Automotive Museum. “We will also highlight the diversity of the culture through the region for the first time, including cars and motorcycles from Northern California, New Mexico, Texas, and Japan, as well as feature cars owned and worked on by women.”

The exhibit space is filled with the aforementioned cars, which each deserve several minutes of inspection to discover the extent of the craftsmanship, but it also includes information on the history of lowriders. At several points in the exhibit, videos go into detail to show how the various aspects of lowriders are created, including intricate engraving. Several artists contributed painted and airbrushed panels for Best in Low, and other lowrider art is spread throughout the displays.

Ever-changing, the Petersen Automotive Museum always offers a fresh experience, and this vibrant, ambitious new exhibit seems to be a hit already. Best in Low will be open through March 2025, and we highly encourage anyone in the Los Angeles area to visit the Miracle Mile and stop by the Petersen to take it all in.

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