I love the London Underground. I'm a big fan. No, I don't care if you think that makes me a geek.
I particularly love the design, art and architecture aspects, being a particular fan of the 1920s and 30s style known as Art Deco. As this was a period of great leaps in solidifying the London Underground 'house style' (in fact, the origins of brand identity started on the network with Leslie Green's fantastic series of stations for the Northern, Piccadilly and Bakerloo lines in the early years of the 1900s, with a clear surface identity and the use of tiling at platform level), it is no surprise that I find much from the time to pique my interest. The amazing head office at 'No. 55' (55, Broadway, SW1, above St James's Park station on the District and Circle, adorned with sculptures by Henry Moore, Eric Gill and Jacob Epstein) is the jewel in the crown, with stations such as Clapham South, Park Royal, Southgate, Arnos Grove and Gants Hill crowding the textbooks as varied and important examples of the British interpretation of Art Deco. Interested travellers should take a trundle to East Finchley and have a look at a rather overlooked but gorgeous sculpture: a bronze archer pointing his arrow towards the tunnel entrance and onwards, south, to London. Charles Holden was the architect of many of these stations - he also notably designed Senate House, amongst others - but the design classics don't end there.
Typography was also well-developed on the Underground during the formative years of the 20th Century, with the iconic Johnston face (named for its designer, Edward Johnston) commissioned by Frank Pick, Commercial Manager of the Underground Electric Railway Company, and adopted by the network from 1913. Frank Pick also oversaw the creation of the famous roundel, a symbol recognised - and emulated - the world over. Again, this was Edward Johnston's work. One of Pick's responsibilities was to increase passenger numbers and in order to fulfil this brief he commissioned a series of posters, from the likes of E. McKnight Kauffer, May Ray, Paul Nash and Graham Sutherland, all of which are highly collectible and available as reproductions nowadays. Pick's vision extended to textiles, light-fittings and even litterbins and contributed to a cohesive and attractive image for the travelling public.
Of course, no discussion of the UndergrounD's contribution to worldwide design would be complete without reference to the Map: the clever, innovative, clear and delightful diagram, first conceived and executed by the modest Mr Harry Beck. His concept was revolutionary and the Publicity Office were reluctant to release it, but when they did, in 1933, it was an instant success. Anyone who sees a geographical map now is in for quite a shock: Beck's key ideas were to expand the central section while reducing the outlying fringes, using clear marks for stations and interchanges and spacing the stations equally along each line. Again, he planted seeds which have led to worldwide adoption of the principles although the actual design of the UndergrounD map remains proudly guarded by Transport for London.
My fave line is the Northern Line, and my fave train is the 1938 train stock (a deep-level train). I got engaged in June 2008 on the Museum's preserved 38TS, as you can see here.
Here is a link to a wonderful pamphlet produced by Westinghouse to commemorate the 50th anniversary of their signalling being used on the network.
Last updated: 31/08/2009
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