Toby Hardman, photographer, began riding freight trains in 1984 and started documenting boxcar graffiti in 1992. He has amassed over 1000 photos which he hopes to incorporate into a book on hobo graffiti past and present. A tradition of hobos and railroad workers for over one hundred years, boxcar graffiti is a remnant of the once-thriving hobo sub-culture. This ubiquitous outsider art form usually consists of a moniker with an accompanying image, sometimes repeated on literally thousands of train cars. Hobo graffiti represents a creative outlet for the itinerant artists of the rails. Boxcar art records a changing culture: the monikers of today's "food stamp tramps," punks, and street kids add a new chapter to the tradition. To learn more about the photo project or the subject of boxcar graffiti, contact Toby at 503.239.0860.

Watch for his monikers on a freight train near you.

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