Plowden exhibition to appear at Illinois Railway Museum

Beginning mid-June, the Illinois Railway Museum will present Requiem for Steam: Railroad Photographs of David Plowden, produced in cooperation with the Center for Railroad Photography & Art. “Conversations” attendees who join our planned museum events on Friday, June 14, will enjoy a special reception from 5:00 to 7:00 pm celebrating the exhibition.

David Plowden and the Center produced this traveling exhibit of more than 50 black & white images. It traces the renowned photographer’s fascination with railway steam power, starting from a childhood spent watching steamboats on the East River, in New York City, and traveling behind steam-powered passenger trains in New England. His featured work includes the end of the steam era in the 1950s, and more recent examinations of steam’s lingering imprints on the American landscape.

The traveling exhibition will continue through late December. For more information, visit the Illinois Railway Museum’s web page.

The “Conversations” conference will continue for a full day on Saturday, June 15 and a half day on Sunday, June 16, at Lake Forest College near Chicago, headlined by an exciting lineup of photographers and artists. Visit our conference page for the schedule and listing of presenters.

David Plowden’s portrait of a Canadian Pacific 2-8-2 in Montreal, Quebec, in 1960.

An overview of the Requiem for Steam exhibition at Illinois Railway Museum.

Spring 2024: Women railroaders, Benson in New Mexico, Boyd tribute & more

The Spring 2024 issue features an all-star lineup of feature articles and photography, just in time to get you fired up for a summer road trip. Highlights include:

A photographic gallery that spotlights Shirley Burman’s forty-five year project to document women in railroading, which led to her book Sisters of the Iron Road;
Read about Jim Boyd, the legendary Railfan & Railroad magazine editor, and 50 years of his influential “Camera Bag” column in a lively story by Justin Franz;
Ted Benson, one of railroading’s finest photojournalists, searches for the “Soul of the Santa Fe” in a photo essay that explores northern New Mexico and reveals far more than surviving semaphore signals;
Adrienne Evans’ “Out of the Archives” column covers our recent digitizing work on Henry Posner III’s one-of-a-kind photography collection, which covers railroading in fifty-four countries;
Elrond Lawrence and Inga Velten interview Peter Hasler, who has pledged his unparalleled postcard collection (more than 30,000!) to the Center;
Our four-page honor roll thanking all of you who supported the Center in 2024.

Member Exclusive: Inside the Fred Springer Collection

Join us for a previously unseen tour of Fred M. Springer’s early black-and-white railroad photography across the United States in the Center’s first member-exclusive program of 2024. Hosted by executive director Scott Lothes, “Inside the Fred Springer Collection” will be held via Zoom on Tuesday, February 20, at 7:00 pm Central Time (8 pm Eastern, 6 pm Mountain, 5 pm Pacific).

Center members who registered will soon receive an email with the program link.

One of the first big photography collections that the Center took on was the work of Springer, which arrived in 2012. We’ve shared many of his color photographs widely, and in this presentation we’ll provide our members with a look into his black-and-white work, much of which has never been shown before.

Springer (1928–2012) began photographing railroads in the 1940s. His work is especially strong in Texas (where he spent much of his life) and throughout the South and the Southwest, as well as the Northeast. While his later color work includes considerable international coverage, this presentation will focus on his earlier black-and-white photography, including steam, short lines, and narrow-gauge operations in the U.S., along with a few images from his numerous trips to Mexico. Beyond the trains themselves, Springer also had a deep interest in infrastructure and the railroad landscape, and some of those photographs will be included, too.

Lothes will also look at how the Springer Collection—and Fred’s great generosity—served as an early catalyst in the Center’s growth. Mark your calendars for Tuesday, February 20, at 7 pm Central Time and plan to join us. We will also record the program and make it available upon request for later viewing.

If you’re not a member, join today! You’ll get access to this program, and all of our previous member exclusives.

Become a member here.

Angelina & Neches River train no. 101 with Alco S4s 11 and 12 passes Angelina County Lumber Company 2-8-2 110 in Herty, Texas, on September 24, 1963. Photo by Fred Springer, Center for Railroad Photography Collection, Springer-01-127.

Central Railroad of New Jersey RS3s ease past the railroad’s enormous coaling tower in Jersey City, NJ, in September 1970. Photo by Fred Springer, Center for Railroad Photography & Art Collection, Springer-02-146-J.

Expand your creativity: Apply for a scholarship at Conversations 2024!

Conversations, the Center for Railroad Photography & Art’s annual conference, is coming back to Lake Forest College in Lake Forest, Illinois, on the weekend of June 14-16, 2024. Explore past conferences here.

Conference scholarships are available to younger and/or emerging photographers and visual artists. They are available to individuals creating photography or other visual art focusing on rail-related subjects, who meet at least one of the following requirements:

Under the age of 30 at the time of application
Enrolled in an institution of higher learning, in a program relating to fine arts
Have less than five years of experience in the field of visual arts

The conference scholarship is designed to support artists who would otherwise be unable to attend. Even better, you’ll have the opportunity to show your work to fellow photographers, artists, editors, and rail community leaders … and get inspired yourself! Details below.

Scholarship recipient Steven Chen presents his photography at Conversations 2023. Photograph by Elrond Lawrence

An ideal applicant will demonstrate:

Thoughtful, creative work in photography or other visual arts with rail-related subject matter
How attending the conference will support their development as a visual artist
Financial need
Volunteer experience

Successful applicants will receive:

Up to $400 in travel reimbursements
Free admission to the conference
Meals provided at the conference venue
Two nights of lodging at the conference hotel
A platform to present your work in a short presentation
The opportunity to meet and learn from industry greats

Application process

Applications will only be accepted electronically.

Please submit the following to info@railphoto-art.org

A short (500 words max) introductory statement that describes:
- The artist’s medium (i.e. photography, oil painting, etc.)
- Any training, experience, or influences that have contributed to the applicant’s development
- A description of the applicant’s past projects and/or special achievements
- How the applicant feels they would benefit from attendance
- Contact information including, name, phone number, and email address

Up to 10 sample images
- In an email attachment, or
- In a linked social media account where the applicant’s work can be viewed

Conference attendees at the Friday reception at Conversations 2023. Photograph by Elrond Lawrence

About the Center:

The Center for Railroad Photography & Art (www.railphoto-art.org | @railphotoart) is America’s foremost organization for interpreting the intersection of railroad art and culture with America’s history and culture. The Center has achieved that status through successful publications (especially its quarterly journal, Railroad Heritage), exhibitions, conferences, and an awards program, all of which showcase the best of railroad photography and art in ways that enhance understanding of railroad history, technology, and artistry.

Founded in 1997, the Center works with photographers, artists, writers, and historians across the country, although its home is in Madison, Wisconsin. The Center does not maintain its museum or archive space, but instead collaborates with other institutions.

About the Conference:

The conference is the nation’s premier venue for presentations on railroad art and photography. The three-day event is held on the picturesque campus of Lake Forest College, just thirty miles north of Chicago. Attendees include active railroad photographers and artists, magazine editors, industry leaders, and scholars from wide backgrounds. Past presenters include photographers David Plowden and Lina Bertucci, railroad executive Henry Posner III, writers such as novelist Linda Niemann and Washington Post transportation columnist Don Phillips, and curators Ian Kennedy of the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Anne M. Lyden of the J. Paul Getty Museum, and Ashlee Whitaker of the Brigham Young University Museum of Art.

Summer 2023: The railroad vanishing point, Alaska RR art, Acela life, collection news, and more

A landmark feature story on the vanishing point of railroad photography headlines the summer issue of Railroad Heritage, our quarterly magazine for Center members. Highlights include:

In his cover story about the foundational element of railroad imagery, Gregory P. Ames gives the “railroad vanishing point” a major spotlight with engaging and insightful research and writing.
Justin Franz writes about Lesley Lynch, Amtrak’s first Acela conductor, with photos by Leo King and other Acela images from our collections.
Our regular “Out of the Archives” column by Adrienne Evans, with collection updates and an interview with Gil Taylor, processing archivist, about the lessons we’ve learned while processing moving-image films.
As the Alaska Railroad celebrates its centennial year, we look back on the art print program it began in 1979, with an article by Justin Franz.
Coverage of the exciting announcement that Peter and Christine Mosse have pledged their world-class railroad art collection to the Center.
“Fellowship and Awe,” an essay about Conversations 2023 by Rick Malo with photography by Elrond Lawrence
The IMAX film Train Time, a new documentary about James J. Hill, and more!

If you don’t receive it already, join the Center and have four issues delivered to your mailbox each year.