Lowrider Logo PNG
Lowrider Magazine is a milestone in the history of lowriding. Published in 1977, the magazine has grown from a simple monthly to a major publication with supplements (Lowrider Edge, Lowrider Arte, Lowrider Bike, Street Beat). With the help of the magazine and local car clubs, road shows and exhibitions have been held.
Meaning and history
The lowrider subculture in the U.S. appeared in the 1950s but became popular only by the end of the 1960s. A fashion trend appeared among the Hispanic youth. They wore large, colorful suits, which were called Zoot Suits, hats with ostrich feathers, and two-tone boots.
They drove the then-widespread Fords and Chevrolets, the most inexpensive cars. Wishing to stand out from the crowd, and show their individuality among their friends, they were doing tuning to their simple vehicles: they decorated them with bright, often multi-colored paintings, put additional headlights in front and rear, cut off hoods like crocodiles’ mouths (Alligator Hood), cut off exhaust pipes and put them on sides, truncated leaf springs or rear suspension springs.
The main difference between such a car is a low, “flowing” landing, as well as the ability to sharply change ground clearance. This effect is reached technically by the interference of the running gear and the introduction of hydraulics to the suspension. Other differences are in the transformation of the appearance of the body, power unit, and interior.
In the late 1970s, three friends who were fans of the Lowrider movement, Larry Gonzalez, Sonny Madrid, and David Nunez, founded Lowrider Magazine, which was a very significant event in the history of the subculture.
In addition to regular print issues, the magazine also organized major events and competitions. After more than 40 years, Lowrider Magazine lost its relevance in 2019 and was closed.
What is Lowrider?
Lowrider is the name of an American magazine, which is fully dedicated to low-rider cars. The brand was established in California at the end of the 1970s, with the first issue released only in 1988, and the last — in 2019. For the latest years, the magazine was mostly published in its online version.
In terms of visual identity, Lowrider magazine was based on a graphical representation of a typical low-riding subculture member. The stylized portrait of a Hispanic man in cool sunglasses has been with the magazine for most of its history. Sometimes the emblem was accompanied by a glossy golden lettering, also very correlating to the subculture’s style.
???? – Today
The Lowrider magazine logo was composed of a black-and-white roundel with a schematic portrait of a mustache man in large aviator sunglasses and a classy head with a black ribbon. The man looked very brutal and confident, with his thin mustache stylishly trimmed. When the wordmark was used with the graphical element, it was arched under the badge, in a gradient gold color palette with the extra-bold letters connected to each other.
Font and color
The bold stylized lettering from the primary logo of the Lowrider Magazine was set in the uppercase of a stylized sans-serif typeface with rounded contours of heavy characters. The closest fonts to the one, used in this insignia, are, probably, Address Sans Pro Black or Neographic Regular, with some significant modifications, including softened contours.
As for the color palette of Lowrider Magazine’s visual identity, it is based on black, white, and golden gradients, which add sleekness and style to the plain and strict combination and represent the low-riding subculture and philosophy better than anything else.
