An exhibition of candid sketches of a cross-section of characters riding the London Underground has caught the imagination of Queenstowners familiar with catching "the Tube".
The series of 44 pencil studies titled "Tube Drawings" was selected from more than 100 sketches made during Queenstown artist Toby Eglesfield's trip to his home country last August.
The works came about during train rides between his sister and mother's homes in London, where he was able to make quick sketches, while being thrown about as the trains shuddered.
"People don't know you are drawing - even when you are really close, people just keep to themselves and are in their own little world," he says.
"It's a quick draw, which is quite nice, as the sketches reflect the bumps and the quickness of both the train and of London life."
Each of the drawings was marked with a custom-made stamp of the London Underground, showing where it had been done. and referenced to a larger map accompanying them at the Front Room exhibition, which started in Queenstown last month.
"People find the work engaging in that when you ride the Tube, you often wonder about the stories of the people you are closed in with.""At the launch it was good to see people speculating about people in the drawings," he said.
All 44 drawings were for sale and while Mr Eglesfield plans to do more sketches the next time he returns to London, his next project is focusing on landscapes within the area's forests.
The exhibition is now in its final week and can be viewed at the Front Room gallery on Memorial St until Friday, March 16.
