In American culture, is there any denominator more common than the car? Since Ford first fast-produced the Model T in its Highland Park factory, cars have been the engine driving America, their chrome wheels rolling across the paved blacktops of the 20th century, outdistancing the horses’ hooves that galloped over the great plains of America’s youth. The horse was bred on open land, the car was bred in Detroit, and in this exhibition the Detroit Institute of Arts offers a glimpse into the minds of America’s greatest car designers. Featuring 12 coupes and sedans from across 70 years of Detroit car making, along with design sketches, sculptures, photos, and paintings, the show takes the viewer through the creative process that brings America’s most iconic cars from the drawing room down to the streets below. —Alex Oliveira