undergroundmap

Beck's use of a small number of symbols limited the need for a complex 'key' to the map, allowing the second requirement ~ that of aesthetic appeal to be achieved too. Frequently too little concern is given to the inter-relation of Form and Function ~ The simple and effective presentation of factual information in a clean and stylish manner.

Beck first submitted his idea to Frank Pick of London Underground in 1931 but it was considered too radical as it did not show distances relative from any one station to the others. During 1933 the map was given its first publication (700,000 copies) and the reaction of the travelling customers proved it to be sound design; it immediately required a large reprint after only one month. Beck was paid the equivalent of £5.25 ~ (say around $10) for his "Design Classic"! It should be said that Beck continued working on the map as the system changed, until his death in 1964 and this work has continued ~ more recently by Tim Demuth (and early on with Paul Garbutt - 1964), of London Transport's Publicity Department. The 'simple colored lines on white' are now used on so many other products the map is symbolic of London's tourist industry itself.

1935
An early example of Harry Beck’s diagrammatic map of the London Underground. First sketched in 1931 it wasn’t until 1933 that Beck’s plan was issued by a sceptical London Underground who had initially thought the design too revolutionary.