Artwork Description
Railroad Spike Track Teeth Black Object Art by RD-357 Real Deal Original Tag Designer Collectible Pop Artist Artwork.
2021 Original Spray Paint RD Tag on Reclaimed Metal Railroad Spike Art Object Size 6x1 Artwork.
Railroad Spike Track Teeth Black by RD-357 – Reclaimed Object in Street Pop Art & Graffiti Artwork
Railroad Spike Track Teeth Black is a 2021 original artwork by RD-357, also known as Real Deal, a graffiti artist whose work explores the intersection of street authenticity and industrial minimalism. This piece features a reclaimed metal railroad spike measuring 6 x 1 inches, transformed through the addition of RD’s distinct black tag. Executed in spray and marker, the tag cuts across the rusted shaft in a tight, angular form, accented by an arrow pushing forward. This object functions as both a sculptural work and a symbolic message, channeling graffiti’s mobile essence into a handheld relic. The spike—once a mechanical element of motion—becomes the vessel for name-based authorship, connecting the physical infrastructure of rail transit with graffiti’s legacy of distribution, presence, and personal signature.
Tag as Sculpture and Object as Surface
RD-357’s choice of object echoes graffiti’s foundational principle of using what is available to communicate identity and energy. Unlike traditional street surfaces like walls or doors, this object carries its own embedded story before it is ever painted—steel forged for permanence, wear from transit and time, dents from labor. The tag laid upon it becomes a layer of personality over raw material, marking the spike as no longer industrial but autobiographical. The black line curves through the space with purpose and direction, controlled yet expressive. The arrow flaring from the D propels the tag with motion, continuing graffiti’s tradition of symbolizing flow, travel, and attack. The artist’s use of black ink on a distressed, brown-and-steel base emphasizes legibility and intent, evoking early handstyle culture in its most stripped-down form.
Graffiti Culture, Movement, and Found Object Authenticity
Railroads have always played a central role in graffiti’s evolution—not only as literal canvases for mobile expression, but as metaphors for movement, rebellion, and connectivity. By placing his tag on a spike rather than a train, RD-357 draws attention to the mechanisms behind motion. This object represents the understructure of transit—what holds tracks together, what enables trains to move, and by extension, what allowed graffiti to gain visibility across cities and boroughs. The object becomes a fragment of cultural infrastructure, repurposed through the graffiti writer’s hand into an artifact of identity. It is as much about claiming authorship as it is about preserving the overlooked materials that define how cities are built and traversed.
Street Pop Art & Graffiti Artwork in Micro Form
In the context of Street Pop Art & Graffiti Artwork, Railroad Spike Track Teeth Black is a testament to how graffiti can inhabit small-scale objects without losing impact. This piece condenses the energy of a full burner into a six-inch form. It distills namewriting into something tactile and permanent, a tool transformed into a sculpture. As a collectible artifact, it speaks to both the material history of the city and the personal history of the artist. The spike becomes a bridge—between labor and expression, between transportation and authorship, between anonymity and signature. It is graffiti boiled down to one tag, one object, and one gesture—yet it contains the weight of movement, story, and presence.
