Photo: “London Shopping Guide” Book Cover, 1977
Riffing off the Tube Map is not entirely a modern phenomenon, as this Penguin book cover from 1977 shows. (Re)design by John Carrod. Source: coversetc/Flickr
All posts tagged: H.C. Beck
Project: 1939 Map of Sydney Railways, Digital Recreation
If imitation really is the sincerest form of flattery, then H.C. Beck must have been blushing when this diagram of railway services in Sydney, Australia was produced in 1939. Designed just six years after Beck's famous London Underground diagram first appeared, it mimics the original's style almost perfectly. As scans of this map on the Internet had quality issues, I decided to redraw it in Adobe Illustrator from scratch.
Historical Map: ACTUAL H.C. Beck Greater London Tube/Rail Map, 1938
Thanks to Robert McConnell, who let me know that the map I featured in my last post is actually a modern digital map made by none other than Maxwell Roberts. Roberts states that he based his version of the map off one that Beck produced, unsolicited, in 1938 and that a copy of this version is in Ken Garland’s excellent book, “Mr. Beck’s Underground Map”. I own a copy of this book, so was a […]
Historical Map: Beck-style Greater London Tube/Rail Map (c. 1940s?)
Here’s something via Chris Applegate on Flickr, where Chris says: Finally put up and framed the gorgeous vintage Tube map I won in a competition yonks ago. It is gorgeous, but it’s not just a Tube map, nor is it anything I’ve ever actually seen before. It appears to be a Greater London Tube Map/main line railway diagram produced in a Beck-like style – a precursor to this 1988 “London Connections” map (May 2013, 3 stars) […]
Reader Question: Which of Beck’s London Underground Maps Do You Prefer?
Question: Which of Beck’s maps of the London Underground do you most prefer, and what properties does it have that elevate it above the others in your opinion as a designer? Answer: My absolute favourite Beck-drawn Tube Map is actually his unpublished 1961 Victoria Line proposal, which I wrote about in this post back in 2012. Go take a look at it – it’s simply gorgeous, with an arrow-straight lavender Victoria Line cutting directly across […]
Photo: Giant Tube Map Wall at Transport for London’s Offices
I have to admit that I’m pretty jealous of this floor-to-ceiling Tube Map in TfL’s spiffy digs. It’s also magnetic and dry-erase marker proof. Source: david_cunningham/Flickr
Royal Mail “Design Icons” Stamps (2009)
Reblogged because of the inclusion of the London Underground Diagram, but the other stamps are also representative of the best of British design and are worth a look as well. In a way, it’s more than a little disappointing that the Tube Map shown is the modern TfL version, and not Beck’s original from 1933, especially as everything else reflects the “classic” original version of the product. It’s the same as if they’d decided to […]
Photo: Tattoo based on H.C. Beck’s First Paris Métro Diagram
The inspiration for this tattoo (which looks real) is really quite obvious when you know what you’re looking for. This is H.C. Beck’s first unsolicited attempt at a Paris Metro diagram from around 1939, and has been reproduced quite faithfully (although without the station names). Source: zachhaschanged/Instagram
Historical Map: Pocket Diary with London Tube Map, 1948
A lovely little black and white version of the Tube map at the front of a 1948 year diary. Drawn by H.C. Beck (see his name at the bottom left), it shows the central area of London only and is based off the 1946 version of the full map. By 1949, interchanges were being drawn with a white connector line between adjacent circles, rather than the separate circles seen here. Source: hollandfamilyarchives/Flickr
Historical Map: Unpublished Proof of H.C. Beck’s London Underground Diagram, 1932
A printer’s proof of the first card folder (pocket) edition of Beck’s famous diagram, with edits and corrections marked in his own hand. Of note is the use of quite ugly and overpowering “blobs” instead of the now-ubiquitous “ticks” for station markers, and the fact that the map has been entirely hand-lettered by Beck, using what he called “Johnston-style” characters. He’s cheated quite a bit with his letterforms and spacing on some of the longer […]