When barriers to creativity are torn down, people can finally explore their untapped potential, a punk rock collector said Thursday at Southern Methodist University Owen Arts Center.

Collector Andrew Krivine, the owner of one of the largest private collections of New Wave and punk graphic design in the world, recently opened a new exhibit featuring his striking collection in “Torn Apart: Punk + New Wave Graphics, Fashion & Culture: 1976-1986.” The collection in Owen Arts Center features flyers, posters, and clothing from the punk rock era of Britain and the United States.

“When I look at this work I get joy that is emulated from people expressing themselves,” Krivine said.

Krivine is joined by Malcolm Garrett who is a British graphic designer with a strong interest in the music industry as the creative director of Images & Co. Their new exhibit runs through May 10.

Punk subculture consisted of people who identified with aggressive and loud music primarily in the 1970s. In this subculture people not only used music but fashion, art, film, and literature to express themselves. Punks separated themselves from the rest of the world because they craved individuality, Garrett said.

“Punks wanted to feel that they existed in a society outside,” he said. “I’m trying to find a physical expression for something that has no physical form.”

Exhibit viewers can get transported into the past narrative of self-identity, said Syra Castillo, sophomore, a journalism major at Southern Methodist University who viewed the exhibit following Krivine and Garrett’s opening panel.

“I never realized how big of an impact punk music had on people’s identity,” she said. “I’m excited to see the exhibit and get a look into the past.”

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The new exhibit is open in SMU Owen Arts Center through May 10 and features memorabilia from the punk rock era. Photo by Caroline Pierce.