"Train of Tomorrow" Sepia Lithograph

A vintage-style print that takes us back to the golden age of Train Travel in the USA.
Presented as an elaborated draft on which a few notes and remarks have been left, it plunges us into an era of discovery. Starting from the mid-thirties, many railroads were driven progressively out of business due to competition from buses, airlines, and Interstate highways.
The answer was the development of deluxe passenger trains, the streamliners. Some became legendary and profoundly influenced popular culture by focusing on concepts such as power, speed, technological progress, comfort, and luxury service like the “California Zéphyr” or the “Mercury train”.

The "Train of Tomorrow," known as the Mercury Train, is likely the subject of the work presented. This iron titan, designed by Henry Dreyfuss, challenged the entire railway industry with its Streamline Moderne style, inherited from Art Deco. Characterized by horizontal and curved lines, this style is also known as retrofuturistic and remains influential in buildings, cars, furniture, and films such as Disney's *The Rocketeer*, Fritz Lang's *Metropolis*, and *The Great Gatsby*. While Dreyfuss's modern designs broke conventional aesthetics, he also ensured the Mercury Train featured state-of-the-art engineering, enabling it to travel up to 130 kilometers per hour. In all these instances, the splendor of the era is vividly remembered.

REFERENCE NUMBER: LU825839467952
PERIOD: Late 20th Century
CONDITION: Good
MEASUREMENTS: Height: 31.75" Width: 24.75" Depth: 1.5"
COUNT: 1
MATERIAL: Paper, Wood
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: United States