I was wondering if anyone here knew about some of the graffiti on rail cars. Guys I see the most are The Solo Artist, Water Bed Lou, John Easley & The Rambler from ports in the southern USA. Anyone know who these fellows are though it might pretty hard to do so.
I photograph railroad graffiti and know many others who do the same. I typically take pitures of the chalk kind, like from Bozo Texino also known as Buzz Blur (whom you can purchase his grafitti now on tshirts, camisoles, coffee cups, kids wear etc. at: http://www.cafepress.com/bozotexino)
Also, love to see Smokin Joes. Most of these railroad grafitti artists of the chalk type have worked for the railroads for many years.
There are many websites that display their grafitti and others under the search words: grafitti, monikers, taggers, etc.
Buzz Blur has even had his artwork displayed in art studios in New York and getting a pretty penny.
Try this website: http://www.sisterbetty.org/graffiti/
This site has grafitti categorized by type.
Even the model railroad producers are manufacturing railcars with grafitti on them. Added realism to your model railroad!
It appears this is one of the many facets of this great interest we call ralifanning.
I saw a UP SD70M yesterday with an American flag, had graffiti all over it, makes me real proud to have the screen name that I do…
Methinks this topic will go downhill faster than a Cadillac on skis…grafitti’s kinda a touchy subject here. Better get the popcorn machine from the diner…
Well this can be a touchy subject for some of us. But I for one like to put a little graffitti on my HO cars. It adds detail and realism.
Yeah Chad grafiti is a definite reality these days, of course on some cars I’ve seen recently all that paint might be the only thing holding them together. I’ve seen some pretty amazing paint jobs on models in HO and G, so realistic its scary. But model trains is one thing, RR photograghers is another, seen some icky squabbles of late.
Most here know my stance on the subject, get caught, give’em a small brillo pad and a hot day to remove it, or simply go to jail.
Get runover by a train while tagging a car or structure or fall off an overpass painting your chickenscratches? Well thats just God’s way of saying “Player 1 Game Over” How does Forrest Gump say it… “Stupid is as stupid does”?"
Need to insert that ending sound effect for Pacman
Eeooo Eeeeoooo Eeeeoooo Eeeeoooo Wup Wup [;)]
I think most of the folks here will turn a blind eye to the old style chalk graffiti, a la Bozo Texino and Kilroy. While one can argue (correctly) that it still damages the finish, and the tagger is trespassing, et al, it’s still not as offensive as the work of today’s mural "artists. " I mentioned in another thread an auto carrier I saw with the whole side painted. Wonder how he managed to afford all that paint?
It was mentioned that some of these people have had work shown in noted galleries. If they are that good, let 'em do “real” art and leave other people’s property alone.
Vic, What really trips me out is these huge paintings (loosely named) that take up entire autorack sides. These guys must carry a ladder and LOTS of paint with them. It makes me wonder how they get so much paint and a ladder to the car without being noticed by the same people that seem to spot every railfan photographer (and drop dime on them).
Mabee a few RR cops should attend these “art” showings and press charges. If you are stupid enough to graffitti up a car and then show your work at a public venue you ought to be locked up for a bit.
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QUOTE: Originally posted by chad thomas
Mabee a few RR cops should attend these “art” showings and press charges. If you are stupid enough to graffitti up a car and then show your work at a public venue you ought to be locked up for a bit. Or better yet sentanced to Community service removing graffitti.
Chad, you should see some of the places they park auto racks. Very secluded.
As for Buzz Blurr, I managed to catch one of his cars without even noticing when I took the shot. Reporting marks: CNW 612743. I used software to isolate the image and turn it into a line drawing for use on my models.
I don’t like railroad graffti though it makes good pics.
I can’t remember the last time I DIDN’T see a boxcar that was both a) free of graffiti and b) from a fallen flag, merely patched over.
My wife and I drove from Salt Lake City back to Reno last week. She asked me what the funny looking cars were, ie. the auto carriers. I told her that when I was a kid the cars didn’t need protective sides on them because the last thing we would think of doing would be to throw a rock at new cars.
She didn’t believe that kids would damage new cars until I reminded her what the Black Muslims we doing in France. 7000 cars burned and the number is still rising.
Working on the RR I see alot of graffti.The one that shocked me the most was an auto rack that was covered from a-b end,and top to bottom.That must of took forever.An old timer that’s retired now told me years ago a guy in Portsmouth,Ohio had some of the Graffti cut out of a car at Freemans scrap in NewBoston Ohio.He somehow found out who the artist was and got it autographed.It was one of the more popular ones found on the RR’s back in the 60’s-70’s.Here are some pictures I took while waiting for a passing train to clear me before I could get a signal to leave on in Williamson,WVa on a coal train a few months ago. 
I love graffiti!, I take photos of cars with graffiti on them all the time.I specialy like the cars with a lot of graffiti on it.
I don’t normaly photograph graffiti but this one caught my eye back in July 2005,
I believe this is the work of Smokin Joe.
Later
if its “art” and depicts a seen…then I am all for it, I do put some on my RR cars to…reality is reality…no matter how ugly it is…
That is just as naive as it is stupid, which I guess can be the same thing. You cant just pin a simliar looking piece of art from a car/canvas. This isnt csi or a serial killer, its an artist. They dont leave dna or anyting behind. There is no hard evidence to snatch them up.
I flick railroad graffiti a whole lot, I like how it looks, but thats an opinion, I guess I’m more open minded than most people.
Those insuniuating that these people all steal their paint, thats just ignorant, its their lifestyles, much in the same fashion as railfanning is yours. Wouldnt you find it rather ingorant that if people said something like “oh, i wonder how they afford all that camera equipment, stolen…”
That autorack if anyone cares, is a proposal
“will you marry me” the bottom says"
[:0]Hey there bud, Who you calling stupid? You ever hear of sarcasum? No need to be insulting.[:(!]
Some might call it art, that’s opinion. Fact is it’s vandalizing private property what ever way you slice it. No, it’s not worth the effort to prosecute but that does not mean it’s right.