Artist shares love of Route 66 by way of images

AMARILLO, Texas (KFDA) – An Indiana artist is sharing his love of Route 66 with the Panhandle.

Craig Kilgore is an artist who has a ardour for images, particularly photographing Route 66.

“For the last 25 years or so, I’ve been photographing streetscapes, signage, letter forms in different places,” stated Kilgore. “Mostly in the United States, but other places like Cubs, Southeast Asia, Ethiopia even, I’ve been to and done that.”

About 20 years in the past he took his first journey on Route 66 in search of previous neon indicators.

“And I was curious about what Route 66 is like now. I took this trip in 2024 and spent 28 days on the road,” he stated. “And it was kind of an exploration of where we’re at before the Centennial. I didn’t even know that the Centennial was coming up at that point until then. And I was like, ‘Wow,’ this is kind of a timely look.”

He tried to pay attention his images on the those that have been within the cities too, not simply signage and streetscapes.

“This trip here, I literally tried to stay as open as possible to be present in the moment,” he stated.

20 years in the past, he did a visit hyper-focused on discovering previous neon indicators.

“Rusty and crusty was what I wanted,” he stated. “And I really didn’t pay attention to much around me for that leg. And this time I was doing the exact opposite. I was looking at inspiration from just whatever I found.”

Kilgore says the resiliency of Route 66 is what drew him to every space.

“And I was really looking for ways I could capture a bigger part of the picture in the compositions. And for Route 66 itself, it’s got such a mythology around it, such a folklore in America,” he stated. “And there’s so many people from around the world that come here because it’s a symbol of our freedom. To me, it’s more a symbol of the American resilience, and that’s what I got out of this.”

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