G-Body Javi
Elevated Lowrider Designs
“Imperial Material” is a phrase that evokes the peak of automotive craftsmanship — painstaking detail, flawless execution, and standards few can touch. To own a lowrider worthy of the Imperials plaque is to possess a rolling piece of high art. To be trusted with painting or laying graphics on one? That’s a distinction reserved only for the best in the game.
Javier Herrera Jr. — known in the community as G-Body Javi for his love of g-bodies — has earned that distinction. His reputation is built on an ability to lay down eye-catching, tone-on-tone graphics with perfect symmetry, transforming metal into works of art. It’s that precision and creativity that has made him the go-to painter for top-tier projects.
Stepping into his garage, the walls are lined with Chicano art — some his own, some from the artists who inspire him. At the center sits a 1973 Glasshouse Caprice, owned by a member of the Imperials. It’s a blank canvas, a testament to his reputation and the trust that he’s built.
For Javi, lowriding wasn’t a choice — it was a way of life. Since childhood, he’s been immersed in the scene. In the 1990s, his jefito and tíos would cruise the streets of El Chuco, lining up their rides and rolling through Montana, Ascarate, and eventually the old drive-in on Delta. That was the foundation of his artistic vision.
“I loved it! As a kid I would draw lowrider art,” Javi recalls. Recognizing his talent, his father, Javier Sr., bought him his first airbrush kit. He didn’t hesitate to put it to use, putting in long hours of practice — not masterpieces at first, just repetition, learning control, layering color, and laying the groundwork for what would become his craft.
By fourteen, his Uncle Danny took him a step further, showing him the ropes of painting on cars. Again, Javi put in the work. It would take twelve years before he felt ready to spray a full car — a milestone made possible by that same uncle, who handed him a Regal with one condition: once the build was done, Javi had to go to school and earn his degree.
He accepted the challenge. On that Regal, he laid a stunning champagne base with raspberry pearl — one of a kind, completely custom. As Javi puts it, “If it has a color code, it’s not custom.” True to his word, when the car was complete in 2001, he shifted gears and went on to earn a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from ASU.
That business degree landed Javi his day job as a Project Manager for the City of Sunland Park, where he works with officials from the municipal to the federal level. The professionalism he applies there carries over into his art.
When he takes on a project, his priority is simple: get it right for the client. His biggest fear? Laying down a paint scheme that doesn’t hit the owner’s heart. For him, spending all that time and money on a paint job and not loving it — that would be a tragedy.
To avoid that, Javi brings the customer into the process from cradle to grave. Before a drop of paint is mixed, he sits with the owner to understand the vision. Then, he studies the car from every angle, painting it first in his mind. He visualizes the graphics against the cars body lines and shape. The car speaks, and he listens. Even the tape lines follow the cars body lines — he won’t let a manufacturer’s measurements dictate thickness. Every stripe, every angle, is custom to the car in front of him.
Only then does he draft the design, pull paint samples, and test accents like gold leaf. Once the owner signs off, it’s game on. The tape is laid, the gun is loaded, and the garage fills with music and paint. Guided by years of experience, instinct, and a steady hand, Javi transforms metal into rolling artwork — every line an echo of the dialogue between artist, client, and car.
Though Javi has more than thirty years of hands-on experience, working on customers’ cars is a relatively new chapter. Until 2021, his art lived exclusively on his own builds — personal canvases where his unfiltered style shined through. That style is shaped by his artists that inspire him: the bold precision of Daniel “Danny D” Galvez, the technical mastery of Bill Carter and Lyle Fisk, and the sharp eye of his biggest critic, his jefito.
The pandemic shifted things. With more time at hand, Javi saw an opportunity to open his craft to others. He always wanted to contribute to the cultura, and this gave him the chance to take everything he learned and put it back into the lowrider scene.
Since then, his designs have made their mark. He’s laid down award-winning graphics on Cutthroat ’86 for the Imperials, La Chiple and Amethyst both for Chicano Player Car Club. Each project pushes him to raise the bar higher. A lifelong learner, Javi approaches every new canvas with the same question: How can I outdo myself this time?
Javi isn’t one to gatekeep. He shares tips regularly on his Instagram stories and never hesitates to offer insight to anyone eager to pick up a brush. What worries him is the culture of instant gratification on social media — quick clips that chase views while skipping over the craft. Too often, young artists get discouraged when their results don’t match what they saw on a screen.
His advice is simple: commit, be patient, and put in the work. “Give me a call,” he says. For Javi, passing on knowledge is as important as laying down the perfect fade. His hope is that his work not only turns heads on the street or at a show, but also lights the spark in the next generation of lowrider artists.
In his garage, the Glasshouse waits — a canvas, a challenge, a promise. Sitting beside it, G-Body Javi reflects on what his craft means to him. “It’s a dream come true,” he says. “It’s a lifestyle.”
For him, color and art are timeless. To add even one brushstroke to the cultura that raised him is both honor and responsibility. In every line he lays, in every fade that catches the light, Javi sees more than paint — he sees legacy. And with each car that rolls out of his shop, he knows the culture rolls forward too.
Credits: Story and photos by J. Orozco