Kustom Kulture is the name for a subcultural movement from the 1950s and 60s in America. This movement included souping up cars to create hot rods and customizing cars into unique one-of-a-kind creations. These custom cars were an identity for the, usually, men that drove them. This movement has been called a distinctly masculine movement and is said to have died out when Detroit car manufacturers started appropriating elements from both rods and customs into mainstream-designed cars. Yet this unique phenomenon produced many visual elements that are still popular today, including graphics such as flames, lettering, and demented-looking characters often called weirdos. Perhaps the king of the weirdos was a character known as Rat Fink, who represented the antithesis of Mickey Mouse, created by pinstriper, painter, and custom car maker Ed “Big Daddy” Roth. Other custom car legends include George Barris, Von Dutch, Dean Jefferies, and Robert William. While the phenomenon was indeed short-lived it has left a lasting impression on American culture and graphic design. Crab claw Flames, funky lettering, flying eyeballs, and demented characters are still popular today as are offshoots such as lowbrow art or pop-surrealism.

TIMELINE

1925 - George Barris born

1929 - Kenneth Robert Howard, Known as Von Dutch born

1932 - Ed Roth Born

1933 - Dean Jeffries born

1948 - Von Dutch drew his first flying eyeball

1948 - Hot Rod Magazine is published

1950s-1960s - Flake Paint popularized

1953 - Barris Customs designs the Hirohata Merc

1953 - Car Craft Magazine is published

1955 - Dean Jeffries paints “Little Bastard” on James Dean’s Porsche Spyder

1961 - Beatnik Bandit designed by Roth

1963 - "There Goes (Varoom! Varoom!) That Kandy-Kolored (Thphhhhhh!) Tangerine-Flake Streamline Baby (Rahghhh!) Around the Bend (Brummmmmmmmmmmmmmm)…" by Tom Wolfe published in Esquire

1964 - Orbitron designed by Roth

1965 - Road Agent designed by Roth

1968 - Beatnik Bandit is cast as a model car (either by Hot Wheels or Revell)

1970s - Odd Rods stickers designed by B.K. Taylor debut

1992 - Kenneth Robert Howard, Known as Von Dutch dies

1994 - Juxtapoz magazine founded (by Robert Williams et al.)

2001 - Ed Roth Dies

2013 - Dean Jeffries Dies

2015 - George Barris dies

REFERENCES

Adamson, G. (2021). Craft: an American History.

Bernsau, T. (2022, February 8). The Once-Lost Hirohata Merc built by Barris Kustom heads to auction. MotorTrend. https://www.motortrend.com/features/hirohata-merc-mecum-auctions-kissimmee-2022/

Bernsau, T. (2021, August 3). Traditional Hot Rod Flames: Details + Photo Gallery from Back to the ’50s. MotorTrend. https://www.hotrod.com/features/hot-rod-flames-back-to-the-50s/

DeWitt, J. (2002). Cool cars, high art: the rise of kustom kulture. 

Ganahl, P. (2003). Ed “Big Daddy” Roth: His Life, Time, Cars, and Art. Cartech.

https://www.jalopyjournal.com/

Kuersteiner, K. (2012). Ed “Big Daddy” Roth, The Architect of Odd Rods. The Wrapper. https://thewrapper.tripod.com/RatFink.html

Kustomrama.com

Lowey, I., & Prince, S. (2014). The graphic art of the underground.

Martinez, R. (2015, December 5). From Pop Surrealism to Lowbrow - Something Got Lost in Translation. Widewalls. https://www.widewalls.ch/magazine/pop-surrealism-lowbrow

Parliament, I. C. (2008). Kustom Graphics: Hot Rods, Burlesque and Rock “n” Roll. Korero Books.

Parliament, I. C. (2010). Kustom Graphics 2: Hot Rods, Burlesque and Rock “n” Roll. Korero Books.

Roth, E., & Kusten, H. (1992). Confessions of a rat Fink: The Life and Times of Ed “Big Daddy” Roth.

Surrealism Today. (2023, April 26). The Lowbrow Art Movement: Ultimate Guide to pop Surrealism - Surrealism Today. https://surrealismtoday.com/lowbrow-art-movement-pop-surrealism/#:~:text=Lowbrow%2C%20also%20known%20as%20pop,evocative%2C%20and%20often%20controversial%20works.