BLACK BOOK

NEAR Zine

2021

Railroads fanatics are a known breed, but within them exists an even smaller niche: the boxcar artist. Any Louisvillian has seen a graffiti tag, but when on the side of a boxcar, they are known as monikers. Contained within BLACK BOOK are a wide selection local, regional, and even cross-national monikers as seen on trains and pieces of postage. In that context specifically, the moniker becomes a piece of “rail mail,” a small work of art typically hidden within a train for other curious railroaders to find. Also featured within the zine is photography of boxcar artists at work, and an interview with NEAR Zine’s own Wooden Axel, who with this zine commemorated the one year anniversary of the last day of his railroad career.

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Zine photography by William Smith