More than 170 works by noted Motor City designers are currently on display in a show called “American Dreaming: Detroit’s Golden Age of Automotive Design, 1946-1973”  at Lawrence Technological University.    

The exhibit of classic art from the auto design studios, which opened on April 17 and runs through May 2, was organized by Robert Edwards, a Detroit-area collector and enthusiast. With co-producer Greg Salustro, Edwards is currently producing a documentary about auto styling and stylists, which is also called American Dreaming.

As the title indicates, the show covers the dynamic postwar era of automotive design from 1946 through 1973. And while the artists on display are too numerous to list here, on our visit we viewed drawings and paintings by Bill Porter, Buck Mook, Dick Nesbitt, Bill Schmidt, Rodell Smith, and a host of other noted car designers. It’s an impressive and informative collection of work.

The gallery space is in the University’s Technology and Learning Center at 21000 West 10 Mile Road in Southfield, Michigan. Hours are 12 PM to 5 PM, Monday through Saturday; admission and parking are free. Below is a very small sample of the work on display.

Robert Hughet Oldsmobile Toronado 1968 

Bill Robinson Packard 1951 

Del Coates Studebaker Hawk 1953

Charles Balogh Ford 1953 

Attributed to Ben Knoll or Richard Arbib 1953 Packard  

“American Dreaming: Detroit’s Golden Age of Automotive Design, 1946–1973”  Lawrence Technological University, 21000 West 10 Mile Road, Southfield, Michigan 48075