ON THE COVER
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Hand-painted lettering was central to that world, with artists like Steve “ESPO” Powers and the late Margaret Kilgallen incorporating sign painting into their work. “Through graffiti, I got obsessed with drawing and got really interested in mid- century Americana industrial design, where you see that style of lettering and little mascots,”
HEN ARTIST BILL REBHOLZ WAS young, he was drawn to an eye-catching display near the train tracks in his hometown of Madison, Wisconsin.
Beyond the industrial grit of train yards, bridges, and corridors, railway cars were painted in bold, vibrant colors by local graffiti artists. His fascination deepened after watching “Style Wars,” the cult documentary about New York’s early ’80s graffiti scene. It clicked: What he saw in his hometown was part of a much larger movement.
“FARM STAND” 2025
foods made from Alaska-grown LP
he tells The Rooted Journal. That aesthetic lingers in rural America — fading signage on markets, liquor stores, gas stations, and agricultural centers, weathered by time but rich with history. For this cover, Rebholz painted a love letter to those remnants of hand-painted Americana, tying together the visual language of farm stands and rural signage. “When I look at a farm stand, it’s almost like a structure made of signs — like you’re inside a sign of sorts — built from rudimentary construction, covered in information telling you what they have and how much things cost,” he says. His artwork celebrates the farmers and food workers in this issue — those who feed their communities, advocate for food security, and honor agriculture as culture.
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