Harley-Davidson Art Deco Styling

For their first 30 years, Harley-Davidsons were hardly a byword in style. They were designed to be solid, reliable machines, and the standard color (after the original grey) was olive green. But the 1930s heralded a new era of stylish design: more to the point, arch-rival Indian had been taken over by the du Pont chemical company. and was now offering a new range of bright colors. Rivalry between the two was so intense that Harley-Davidson had no choice but to respond, and from 1933 the side-valve Harleys came in a range of bold colors and eye-catching graphics in the art deco style. This was a new era of speed and elegance, and Milwaukee did its best to keep up.