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.

‘Tubelines’ is his series of one-off original pen drawings that look like seismic
wave outputs we see when an earthquake occurs. It’s fascinating to see that each
tube line has its own energy fingerprint that makes it distinct from the others.
Charlton says, “We become oblivious to the jolts, bumps and sways on the tube
as it meanders through the twists and turns of each journey. 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. Charlton
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.

Framed signed limited edition (250) prints are are available at http://www.stephencharlton.com

Charlton’s next challenge is to map the Circle Line, drawing from the centre of
the page spiralling toward the edge of the paper. Watch this space.