Route 66 gallery exhibits actuality behind the nostalgia

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (InvestigateTV) — A brand new gallery exhibition is providing guests a distinct perspective on Route 66, shifting past classic automobiles and neon indicators to indicate the actual individuals who lived alongside America’s most well-known freeway.

“The Route 66: Alternative Perspectives” gallery on the Coconino Center for the Arts in Arizona options images that captures the humanity of the historic highway through the early 2000s. Marketing director Julie Sokol mentioned the exhibit stands aside from typical Route 66 shows.

“A lot of what the country will be seeing in the next year are nostalgic, fun, cute, poppy scenes, but this exhibition brings a little more reality, gritty backstory,” Sokol mentioned.

Two artists doc actual life

The exhibition options work from two photographers.

Wes Pope used pinhole publicity with soda cans to seize his photographs.

The different artist is Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer Edward Keating, whose decade of Route 66 images targeted on documenting actual folks alongside the freeway.

Catherine Keating, Edward Keating’s daughter, mentioned the gallery exhibits an essential a part of American historical past that individuals usually keep away from confronting.

“Sometimes it’s really hard to look at the truth, and we steer away from it. But I think that’s the stuff we should care about. This is our country, you know. He documented a really important time in history,” Catherine Keating mentioned.

Edward Keating died in 2021, however his connection to Route 66 was private. Catherine Keating mentioned her father skilled his personal struggles in Flagstaff.

“He had a major drinking problem and woke up one morning in Flagstaff and just realized he had hit rock bottom, and it was there in Flagstaff that he decided to rebuild his life,” she mentioned.

Centennial celebration approaching

Route 66 will have a good time its centennial in 2026. The freeway spans 2,400 miles from Chicago to Los Angeles and was created in 1926 when the Bureau of Public Roads launched the primary federal freeway system.

Arizona is dwelling to the longest steady stretch of Route 66.

Alan Winninger with Route 66 Centennial mentioned Flagstaff is making ready for an inflow of vacationers.

“Oh, Europeans are going to be out the door. It’s going to be nuts. We’re going to see an influx of about 250,000 to 300,000 new tourists come in,” Winninger mentioned.

The centennial celebration is ready to start April 30, 2026, with a nationwide kickoff in Springfield, Missouri, the birthplace of Route 66.

Catherine Keating mentioned her father’s legacy continues when folks view his images and see themselves mirrored in the actual tales of Route 66.

“He just documented, you know how they lived their lives. And I think that’s just a really rare thing to see. So, I just encourage people to really process that, you know, and I think a lot of people see themselves in these photographs too,” she mentioned.

Watch more from the new Route 66 Gallery by clicking here.

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