Ztrains: Designing A Marklin Car Set

The Ztrack Marklin Anniversary Set
In 2003 I was asked by Rob Kluz, editor of Ztrack magazine, if I'd like to create the artwork for the Ztrack 15th anniversary, Marklin special imprint car. Being a subscriber, as well as a fan of the work Ztrack does, I was very pleased to have the opportunity to work on this car. Rob wanted to do something special for this release to commemorate Ztrack's 15 years of publication, so he came up with the idea of a limited release two car set. Over the course of several weeks we discussed many possibilities, but the one theme that was consistent was the idea of the two cars being graphically tied together.

We decided on the classic German DB 103 as our locomotive, in part because it is such a recognizable train. The DB 103 also lends itself very well to the type of relaxed line art I tend to favor in my drawings. In the final illustration the DB 103 is pulling a line of cars across the length of the two car set, with the mountains of southern Germany supporting the entire scene. The cars are framed with the Ztrack logo on the front car, and with a special Ztrack anniversary logo we developed on the second car. These elements give the set a very nice sense of balance. The Marklin special imprint logo is also on both cars.

This project was very rewarding for me and from the initial reactions, it seems this design has been a great success. Thanks Rob, and here's to another 15 years of Ztrack.