Road trips usually sound fun at first thought. After the first couple hours they can stop being so fun. However, on a recent day trip from Baltimore to Chicago, I took notice of a certain type/branding culture that I usually ignore. It’s not elegant by any means, in fact it’s often a dirty, weathered and peeling culture.

Freight trucking is a bold and sleepless industry, one full of grizzled men and gun-slinging Yosemite Sams. And with tough attitudes, we expect tough branding. Maybe. As irrelevant as each truck feels from the next, certain brands come with not-so-bad typography. Now, the images I am sharing are by no means beautiful; honestly, they each feel dated and exist outside of any significant design circle.

With that said, how many times have you pantomimed a trucker’s gesture in hopes of a blaring horn salute in return? In the same small way that truckers are not so tough after all, it is possible that the branding might also contain evidence of class, or at least individual pride. Again, just an observation, but here are a few samples mostly from the Ohio Interstate.

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The graffiti culture is one that has surrounded me fairly consistently in the past. However, It’s one avenue of lettering that I’ve barely scratched the surface of, myself. Despite the playful, energetic personality that surrounds street artists, there exists a heavy weight that keeps the amateur from breaking into the scene. Street credit exists, and the street is the street after all.

I’ve had the incredible pleasure of visiting 5 Points in Queens, New York on two occasions. Recommendation: if you’ve never been there, get there; this paint-consumed warehouse is one of NYC’s best kept secrets. Since my first visit, I’ve done a lot of research on the progress of street art in all form, I’ve picked the brain of a few friends and acquaintances immersed in the East coast culture – and mind you, they take their identities very seriously. Artists from all around flock to 5 Points for a chance to claim a few square feet of wall space. The location is almost like a who’s who or hall of fame documentation, with names and styles of all kinds on display, and an urban setting that’s absolutely prone to photo and video shoots – one of which was staged and executed during my second visit. I still don’t know what is inside of the warehouse, but I’d like to visualize endless drafting tables and artists plotting their next attack!

While many of the more outstanding pieces on display leave most people dumbfounded and sweating to understand the lettering structure, the main attraction of my post is actually focused on a 50-second scrawl on paper with a chisel tip Sharpie marker. As much respect as I can muster up for the brilliant ensembles of color, pattern, form and depth displayed under bridges and along freight train cars, I find myself most genuinely in love with what are referred to as hand styles.

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