Artist and tube traveller Stephen Charlton, realised that drawing a straight line whilst riding the tube is a pointless exercise - literally. This gave him the inspiration to create drawings that form a visual record of his journey from station to station throughout the underground system.
‘Tube Lines’ is his series of one-off original pen drawings that look like the siesmic wave outputs we see when an earthquake occurs. It’s facinating to see that each tube line has its own energy fingerprint that makes it distinct from the others.
He says, “We become oblivious to the jolts, bumps and sways on the tube as it meanders through the twists and turns of each tubeline. Some lines are smoother than others, and this can be seen in my work as they become visually frenetic as the ride gets bumpier. ”
Each drawing is a unique record from the start to finish of a journey. Stephen has to take an arm break at each stop but not taking the pen from the paper, as drawing vertically for extended periods can be physically challenging. Fellow commuters often watch the work being created and appreciate the opportunity to see an artist at work, some even ask for a copy for themselves as a record of their daily commute.
Signed limited edition prints are available here.
