The deep-rooted history of the punk music scene in Orange County and beyond is the focus of a new exhibition at the Fullerton Museum Center.
“Punk OC, From the Streets of Suburbia,” will feature memorabilia, instruments, clothing, concert posters, set lists, photographs and other historical items, all on loan from the artists themselves, to chronicle the county’s place as a forerunner of the punk genre.
The exhibit will also pay homage to venues that played a crucial role in the development of the local punk scene, including the Doll Hut in Anaheim and the Cuckoo’s Nest in Costa Mesa, which museum curator Georgette Collard said, “was such an important venue for punk rock.”
Punk OC opens Saturday, April 5, kicking off with live performances from 6 to 9 p.m. in plaza adjacent to the museum on Wilshire Avenue. The exhibit runs through Aug. 10.
T.S.O.L. (True Sounds of Liberty), a punk band that was formed in 1978 in Huntington Beach, and D.I., a punk band that got its start in 1981 in Fullerton, are scheduled to perform.
Joe Escalante of the Vandals will be the D.J.
The idea for an exhibition of the local punk scene began to take shape about a year ago, Collard said.
“I think there were a lot of people already interested in punk rock here in Fullerton,” Collard said. “And then that’s when the proposal came up, the board approved it, and then we were able to get started with this punk rock exhibit.”
The front area of the gallery is dedicated to Fullerton punk bands, including Social Distortion, D.I., and the Adolescents.
“It’s all about celebrating the local talent that put Fullerton on the punk rock map,” Collard said.
The exhibition will also highlight Orange County bands such as Shattered Faith, Agent Orange and T.S.O.L., Collard said.
Items on loan from legendary bands out of OC, such as The Crowd and The Vandals, as well as Middle Class, which is considered one of the first hardcore bands in Orange County, also make up the exhibition.
“Middle Class was a huge influence and kind of put Orange County onto the map as well,” Collard said.
One of Collard’s first steps to organizing the exhibit was connecting with her good friend, Antonio Hernandez, the drummer for T.S.O.L., who then reached out to fellow musicians and longtime friends from other bands about loaning out their personal items for the exhibition.
One of Hernandez’s drum sets is featured.
Outside of the Punk Rock Museum in Las Vegas, finding extensive displays of memorabilia related to the genre is difficult, Hernadez said, and so his musician friends were happy to have their items go on display in a museum.
“There is a lot of punk history from Orange County,” Hernandez said. “Actually, that’s where punk rock, in my opinion, that’s where it originated, in Orange County and then I think LA went right after that.
“I think one of the main reasons why I wanted to help out is to inspire other kids and people to want to play music because that’s what inspired me to want to play punk rock,” he added.
Collard also relied on the contributions of author and former Los Angeles Times and Orange County Register journalist Jim Washburn, who spent years covering pop culture and the local music scene.
To the casual observer, Orange County is probably not the first place one thinks of for the alternate viewpoints and anti-establishment statements that define punk music, said Washburn, who served as co-curator for the exhibition.
But there was plenty going on in the county to serve as inspiration for punk lyrics, he said.
“The punk stuff I love for the reasons that everyone else did,” Washburn said. “It just had an energy and power and an anger to it, which very often was warranted. Orange County, everybody thinks is this beautiful pristine place, but there were things to protest. And it was a fun shift to notice when punk came in.”
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