150 Years of London Underground

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

The London Sale at Christie's

 


A collection of fantastic London-related lots have been on display at Christie's South Kensington over the summer and went under the hammer this afternoon for The London Sale. There was a lot of interest in the room and online, and a real buzz to the proceedings, which saw Tobias Till's London A-Z achieve £10,000 and Stephen Walter's London Subterranea £7,500. We'd like to congratulate them both!

Other highlights included a double-decker Routemaster bus, which achieved £67,250, and Simon Patterson's 'The Great Bear' which featured in our Art of Mapping exhibition last year and fetched £25,000. We recommend looking through the full catalogue for a wonderful array of exhibits.