Ruby reds, emerald greens, sapphire blues and pearly whites. Neon is street jewelry. Neon signs are iridescent sculptural art and when animated these signs become kinetic art. In the world of art, these signs are classed as folk art in that they are unique pieces, locally hand-crafted, and are inspired by and reflect local culture. In New Mexico, we see neon cowboy, Indian and Mexican/Hispanic cultures represented along with local flora and fauna from cactus to wild horses.
Captivating neon signs could be found across Route 66 in New Mexico. A vintage postcard from Albuquerque stated “Albuquerque is reputed to have the most brightly lighted main street in America. The galaxy of neon makes it an easily believed fact.” Yes, a neon galaxy!
These neon signs, appreciated as roadside folk art, have become revered and valued. Starting about twenty years ago, historic preservation grants became available to communities and small businesses to restore these art pieces. In New Mexico, dozens of iconic signs have been restored with grant funds.
The New Mexico Route 66 Alliance includes a preservation team with more than 20 years of experience restoring roadside neon signs and maintains a volunteer team to troubleshoot and repair these historic signs. The Alliance team is currently producing a do-it-yourself neon troubleshooting and repair instructional video that will serve as training to enable business owners and enthusiasts to repair their neon signs.
The Neon Gallery is a sample of New Mexico Route 66 neon signs with images collected over the last 25 years. The notation “dark” on some images means the neon does not work but the sign still stands. The notation “Gone” means the image was recorded before the sign was taken down.
There exists several wonderful neon signs still standing but no night images have been found at this time and therefore are not included in this gallery.
In order for the gallery slideshow to load faster, the gallery is distributed over 5 pages. Click on the links below.
Tucumcari slideshow click here
Santa Rosa – Moriarty slideshow click here
Albuquerque slideshow click here
Grants slideshow click here
Gallup slideshow click here
If you have images that should be part of the gallery, or if we have used an image that has not been credited, submit to: president@route66alliancenm.org.
Part of our mission is to preserve and protect! We’re proud to help keep the tradition alive!
Special thanks to all our photographers, Johnnie Meier, Cindy Carson, Rhys Martin, Jim Thole. Additional images selected from around the internet.