Transport for London’s (TfL) Art on the Underground programme has revealed the 41st pocket Tube map cover, designed by conceptual artist Agnes Denes.
The new design marks the 25th anniversary of Art on the Underground, taking over from Rita Keegan’s cover, which was the first to feature the rebranded overground lines.
Titled Map Projections, Denes’ design will be featured on pocket Tube maps distributed from early July and will be available free of charge at all TfL stations.
Posters showcasing the new design are already displayed around the network.
Art on the Underground head Eleanor Pinfield said: “Denes uses Map Projections to reimagine the earth and the place of humans on it.
“Here, taking on the cover of the Pocket Tube map, her projection reimagines our place in the city and will be used by millions of people as they navigate the urban environment.”
Denes’ map design distorts the globe into an electrified form, reflecting how the Tube map simplifies the complexity of London’s transport system into an easily-navigable diagram.
Denes is known for her use of isometric projection, a technique which transforms 3D forms into 2D art, a process often used in technical sketches.
Born in Budapest in 1931, Denes is a Hungarian New York-based conceptual artist, and her work is included in major museum collections worldwide, including MoMA, the Met, and the Whitney.
She is most famous for her 1982 protest piece Wheatfield – A Confrontation, a two-acre wheat field planted in Manhattan which was intended to highlight pressing social, economic, and ecological issues.
Deputy Mayor for Culture and the Creative Industries Justine Simons OBE said: “The pocket Tube map is much-loved and a place to discover some of the world’s most important artists.
“Agnes Denes is no exception, it’s a real privilege to share this new commission with thousands of Londoners and visitors as they travel around London, bringing world class art into the everyday.”
Art on the Underground will launch three more artworks on the network later this year in Waterloo London Underground station, Stratford station, and Brixton London Underground station.
Image credits: Map Projections, Agnes Denes, 2025, Photos: Benedict Johnson
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