February has been miserable outside. Isn’t it always? The cold and wind have kept me from venturing into the rail yard at work, but a few graffiti-covered cars have rolled in and parked within view of my office. Last Friday, I drove along the line and snapped photos of four that caught my eye. This post is a short one, but welcome to another edition of railcar spotting! Here’s hoping March brings better weather and more to see.
If you’re new to railcar spotting, here’s what’s up: I work at a plastics factory that receives a lot of raw materials by rail. Every month, I share the best graffiti I find. With three spurs that extend from the old Big Four Michigan Branch, we can hold about sixty cars in our yard. If everything is as it should be, we get new ones twice a week. This first car wouldn’t have made the cut in a more bountiful month, but it stood out among its many naked companions.
I have chosen to call this piece BEES, but I have no idea what it says or what the artist’s intent was. When it comes to pieces like this, I like to channel my inner Potter Stewart: I may not always understand what I take pictures of, but I know the good stuff when I see it. Like the previous tag, this might not have made the cut during more prosperous months. Still, it managed to catch my eye as I passed it.
I saw this ReBaR car lickety-split. Unlike the previous two pieces I shared, it might have made it into a top ten list for the year! Sadly, it sits behind that unfortunate fence that separates our yard from a truck passage. Still, the artist’s use of gradients and contrasting colors elevate this piece beyond the others I’ve featured so far. The splash of color was welcome during a cold and dreary Friday.
I was about to give up on finding solid railcar art, this last car caught my eye on my way home. I can’t quite decipher the first two-thirds, but the second half clearly spells POEK. Both pieces share a similar aesthetic, set against a murky green background that reminds me of something rising from the grimy depths of Poison Pond in Donkey Kong Country. I always appreciate full-length railcar art, and this one definitely delivers.
I thought I was done with railcar photos for the month, but then this one caught me off guard on Tuesday. I couldn’t begin to decipher the tangled letters sprawled across its side, but the bold blues and yellows practically demanded a photo. Some graffiti blends into the rust and grime of the rail yard, but this? This one refused to be ignored. I wish I’d been able to see it up close without that pesky fence!
I know I would’ve found more art if I’d braved the cold and ventured into the rail yard. Heck, I could see glimpses of some great pieces through the gaps between the cars I did photograph! Between the biting wind, many inches of snow, and sheer laziness, though, I stuck to what was easily visible even as the temperatures warmed up. Hopefully, March brings better weather and a fresh batch of railcars to explore. Hospitable days and longer walks along the line are just around the corner- at least, that’s what I keep telling myself!
