Silhouettes of an engineer and a conductor set against a never-ending sea of train tracks result in a powerful Deco design. “The whole impression which the French Railways tried to convey here, and which the graphics reinforce so directly, is that of strength, stability, and safety—all important elements of ‘A Public Service at the Service of the Public’” (Colin, p. 12). The apparent simplicity of the art and tag line belie a complex political reality in postwar France: consolidating the welfare state while mollifying the right wing and marginalizing the Communist Party. In this context, Colin's design is superb: the conductor in blue, a worker in red, and a multitude of tracks stretching to the horizon: an assembly of roles with a common goal.
De Plas, Paris
literature: Colin Affichiste, 182; PAI-LXXXVIII, 292