May, 12, 2026
Exhibitions and Special InstallationsMedia Alerts
New exhibition at Phoenix Art Museum explores relationship between art, industry, and automobiles in conjunction with the 100th anniversary of Route 66
Modern Treads: The Discount Tire Poster Collection opens June 2026 featuring oversized posters and color lithographs commissioned by Michelin, Dunlop, Goodyear, and more
PHOENIX, AZ (May 12, 2026) – This summer, Phoenix Art Museum (PhxArt) presents Modern Treads: The Discount Tire Poster Collection, showcasing 15 oversized posters that celebrate industrial innovation and the advent of the automobile. Spanning 1900 to 1930, featured works illuminate how industry giants such as Michelin, Dunlop, Continental, Pirelli, and Goodyear utilized poster advertisements to promote the car not just as a mode of transportation, but as a vehicle to achieve freedom and aspirational lifestyles. The exhibition also features automotive fashions from the PhxArt Fashion Collection, providing a holistic view into the visual culture of the automobile. Modern Treads: The Discount Tire Poster Collection will be on view at PhxArt from June 13, 2026 through January 3, 2027.
“Throughout history, artistic expression, design, and industrial innovation have evolved side by side,” said Jeremy Mikolajczak, the Museum’s Sybil Harrington Director and CEO. “In this exhibition, visitors will experience how dynamic art forms like lithography captured the excitement and transformative impact of the automobile. This presentation also reflects the Museum’s own longstanding connection to car culture through the Men’s Arts Council Copperstate 1000, one of North America’s premier vintage car road rallies for more than three decades. We are deeply grateful to Discount Tire for sharing these remarkable works with Arizona audiences, and we invite visitors of all ages to explore this compelling story in our galleries, just in time to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Route 66.”
The Discount Tire Collection was created in 1982 by Bruce T. Halle (1930–2018), founder and chairman of Discount Tire, headquartered in Scottsdale, AZ. It features more than 500 color lithographs and vintage advertising posters from the late 1880s to the mid-1980s, capturing the era’s creativity and humor while also nodding to the technological advances made in tire manufacturing.
Modern Treads is the first PhxArt exhibition in more than two decades to present outstanding works from the Collection of Discount Tire. Across four thematic sections, the exhibition reveals how artists played a vital role in shaping the imagery and ideals of a rapidly modernizing world. Art in Motion highlights the surprising relationship between rubber manufacturing and modern art, as tire companies turned to artists working in styles ranging from classical antiquity to Art Nouveau to create compelling advertising imagery. The Golden Radius highlights the symbolic power of the tire as a gateway to freedom and exploration within a culture driven by speed, mobility, and aspiration. Wheels of Change explores innovation in pneumatic design and acknowledges the material origins of rubber and its transformation into a global commodity essential to modern life. Finally, Industry and Reform addresses the human and environmental consequences of the automobile and the industry’s transition to sustainable production methods.
Modern Treads also presents period automotive fashions from the PhxArt Fashion Collection. These ensembles are placed in conversation with The Discount Tire Poster collection, offering a glimpse into the accessories people wore at the turn of the 20th century to protect themselves from rough road conditions, including wind, dust, mud, and more.
“Bright, bold, and full of character, these posters invite visitors of all ages to step back in time to the dawn of the 20th century, a time of rapid growth and innovation,” said Rachel Zebro, the Museum’s Associate Curator of Collections, who co-curated the exhibition. “Created in collaboration with Discount Tire, the exhibition celebrates the vivid imagination and skillset of artists who explore the intersection of art, technology, and mass communication. Featuring a variety of posters with strong visual graphics and modern forms, Modern Treads offers a rare opportunity for PhxArt to highlight a lesser-known side of art history, where advances in printmaking meet the marketplace.”
“We are delighted to share a piece of this remarkable collection in conjunction with the milestone anniversary of Route 66, a highway that came to symbolize mobility, innovation, and freedom in 20th-century America,” said Susan Driver, Curator of the Collection of Discount Tire, who co-curated the exhibition with Zebro. “These artworks depict first-hand a transformation of daily life that made long-distance travel possible — not only across the United States but around the world.”
“Modern Treads offers visitors a unique opportunity to experience the intersection of art, innovation, fashion, and mobility during a transformative moment in modern history,” said Sentari Minor, Board Chair of The Men’s Arts Council, the exhibition’s presenting sponsor. “We are proud to support an exhibition that highlights the creativity and cultural impact of early automotive design and advertising. This year’s Copperstate 1000 celebrated the 100th anniversary of Route 66, so this exhibition is something near and dear to our hearts.”
High-resolution photography for Modern Treads: The Discount Tire Poster Collection can be found here.
To request interviews, contact the Communications Office of Phoenix Art Museum at press@phxart.org and kaylee.weyrauch@phxart.org.
About the Exhibition
Modern Treads: The Discount Tire Poster Collection is organized by Phoenix Art Museum and co-curated by Rachel Zebro, Associate Curator of Collections, and Susan Driver, Curator, Collection of Discount Tire.
Modern Treads: The Discount Tire Poster Collection is made possible by Presenting Sponsor Men’s Arts Council.
All exhibitions at Phoenix Art Museum are underwritten by the Phoenix Art Museum Exhibition Excellence Fund, founded by The Opatrny Family Foundation with additional major support provided by Joan Cremin.
Admission is free for Museum Members and youth aged 5 and younger. Entrance into the exhibition is included in general admission for the public. Visitors may also enjoy reduced admission to the exhibition during voluntary-donation times on Wednesdays from 3 – 8 pm, made possible by SRP and City of Phoenix, with additional support from Arizona Community Foundation. For a full breakdown of general admission prices and hours, see phxart.org/visit/.
About Phoenix Art Museum
Since 1959, Phoenix Art Museum (PhxArt) has engaged millions of visitors with the art and fashion of our region and world. Located in Phoenix’s Central Corridor, PhxArt creates spaces of exchange and belonging for all audiences through dynamic exhibitions, collections, and art experiences. Each year, more than 250,000 guests engage with critically acclaimed national and international exhibitions, as well as the Museum’s collection of more than 21,000 works of American and Western American, Asian, European, Latin American, modern, and contemporary art and fashion. The Museum also presents vibrant photography exhibitions made possible through the Museum’s landmark partnership with the Center for Creative Photography at the University of Arizona in Tucson and is home to The Gene and Cathy Lemon Art Research Library, The Thorne Miniature Rooms, The Ullman Center for the Art of Philip C. Curtis, and Arizona Costume Institute (ACI). For the community, PhxArt hosts lectures, live performances, outstanding examples of global cinema, arts-education workshops, family-focused programs, and more. To learn more about Phoenix Art Museum, visit phxart.org, or call 602.257.1880.
About The Discount Tire Poster Collection
The Collection of Discount Tire was started in 1982 by Bruce T. Halle (1930–2018), founder and chairman of Discount Tire, headquartered in Scottsdale, AZ. It encompasses vintage advertising posters from the late 1880s to the mid-1980s. Today the collection includes over 500 color lithographs that capture the era’s creativity and humor while nodding to the technological advances made in tire manufacturing.
About Men’s Arts Council
The Men’s Arts Council (MAC) of Phoenix Art Museum, founded in 1967, is a 501(c)3, non-profit organization that supports the Museum’s programs and activities through its unique events such as the Copperstate 1000 and the Copperstate Overland, a vintage off-road rally. The Men’s Arts Council’s efforts enable the organization to make annual contributions to Phoenix Art Museum’s operating budget and financially sponsor exhibitions. For more information, visit https://mensartscouncil.com/.
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