Today is the 150th anniversary of the London Underground! To celebrate, we will be exhibiting Simon Patterson's 'Saptarishi' at the London Art Fair next week.
Commissioned by the London Transport Museum last year, the print is a contemporary update of 'The Great Bear,' his iconic tube map from 1992. The artist has substituted the standard station names with his own, to create new lines of association: the Bakerloo Line is filled with spies; the Victoria Line with Victorians; and the Hammersmith and City Line is devoted entirely to the Murdochs in a nod to his 'Journalists' line from his earlier piece.
Also on display will be Susan Stockwell's 'Underground Map' - a hand-embroidered, limited edition handkerchief depicting the London tube lines. All have been coloured red, drawing a parallel between the city's transport system and an arterial network.
Simon Patterson | Saptarishi | 2012 | Screenprint on enamel | 102 x 127 cm | Signed, dated and editioned on reverse | Special limited edition of 15 | Commissioned by the London Transport Museum
Susan Stockwell | S Stockwell Underground Map | 2012 | Hand-embroidered handkerchief | 40 x 40 cm | Commissioned by the London Transport Museum | Signed certificate of authenticity
