What has wheels, made of metal, comes in a wide variety of colors and makes the perfect artist canvas? The answer is automobiles, of course, or motorcycles, or trailers. Custom metal painting is an exciting art form that gets very little recognition as an art form.

Airbrush painting has been around since the turn of the century. A fellow in Iowa invented the first airbrush paint gun in the late 1800's. Custom metal painting has been around since our love of wheels was born, but more recently has seen an increase in popularity thanks to such shows as Rides and American Chopper.

The evolution of custom metal painting has included some impressive technology. Airbrushing uses a compressed air tool to spray paint on a surface. Paints and techniques have undergone change due to pressure from the EPA and OSHA to control the release of toxins into the environment. Computerized color mixing has made the possibility of matching automobile colors and the addition of custom colors much easier and accurate.

Themes have traditionally pointed to the wild side of life, flames, skulls and wild animal profiles being some of the more popular. These days the themes are much more mainstream and appealing to a broader audience. One of our city guitars, located at the entrance to Honor Heights Park, was airbrushed. It was painted by the talented artist and local business owner, Devlin Osmon.

Paint brush technique can now be seen in a variety of media and genre. Learning to control the High Volume Low Pressure guns requires a high degree of focus and supervision. Like any other art, mastering the techniques and process requires training and repetition.

The Indian Capital Technology Center offers a class taught by Mr. Kevin Baize. The students learn the basics in the fall and by spring are allowed to try their hands at custom painting.

Few other media allows the artist quite as much freedom to explore blending colors or achieve the vibrancy of color as airbrush. Few other media requires quite the same degree of skill in surface preparation.

Visit a vintage care show and admire the job they have done in recreating those canvases.

I think you can expect to see more and more airbrush art in our lives as artists continue to discover its merits and possibilities outside of metal.

The next time you are in traffic, tune in to the art around you. Be on the watch for landscapes or creative graphics as they roll by.

Be aware that art doesn't have to come on a white square canvas; art can come from all kinds of wonderful unexpected places.