I’ve created and maintain a working bibliography of railroad-themed art exhibitions. I also monitor catalogs and companion publications.
So far, I have documented 39 identified exhibitions from 1949 to present.
Please contact me (below) for the full bibliography, which currently exists as a Google Doc.
Observed Trends in Railroad Art Exhibitions
The overall trend: From progress → nostalgia → analysis → infrastructure & systems thinking, with growing frequency and complexity of exhibitions post-2008.
- 1949–1981: Railroads appear within broader “American Scene” and industrial art; framed as symbols of progress, modernity, and infrastructure, not yet a standalone subject. Tone largely celebratory or neutral.
- 1980s–early 2000s: Rapid growth in photography-centered exhibitions and institutional collecting. Nostalgia remains important, but exhibitions increasingly emphasize documentary, labor, and social history.
- 2008: Pivotal moment—railroad art asserted as a legitimate, global art-historical category; more analytical, comparative framing.
- 2010s: Shows emphasize labor, place, and deindustrialization; railroads as lenses on community and landscape change.
- 2020s: Collecting, institutional partnerships, and corporate collections become increasingly visible, alongside renewed museum interest in railroad painting and mixed-media exhibitions. More traveling exhibits.
Prediction: Themes in Future Railroad Art Exhibits
The more central infrastructure, climate, and decolonial narratives become in museums, the more likely “railroads” will appear as a substantial—albeit not exclusive—lens in major exhibitions.
Steam-oriented subjects will likely continue, but increasingly within broader thematic frameworks. I predict future themes in these areas:
- Climate and environment, including transit
- Infrastructure & logistics (supply chains, ports, rail, energy)
- Labor, migration, and inequality
- Decolonization and Indigenous sovereignty
- Experience economy (immersive shows, Instagrammable moments)
Based on this assumption, my collecting includes labor and social commentary. I believe those are timeless topics—within railroad art and for humanity in general.
For example, imagine a railroad art exhibit in 2060. Few would have seen steam locomotives in mainline revenue service. But they would relate to the 1942 Jack Delano photo of exhausted Pullman porter Alfred MacMillan—or to a crowded transit scene by Reginald Marsh or Daniel Ralph Celentano.
Accessing the Full Bibliography
I’m glad to share the full bibliography (currently a nine-page Google Doc, with specific dates, locations, and resource links). Please contact me.