Going Down The London Underground In The Later 1980s – Design You Trust

Going Down The London Underground In The Later 1980s

Paul Baldesare was taking photographs on the London Underground between 1987 and 1990. He was drawn to recording life on the Tube network. Is that you or someone you know shoegazing or reading the adverts, keeping senses working under-time and waiting to exhale as you or they rode the Tube?

The images shown here were taken over a three year period on the London Underground.

More: Down the Tube Travellers on the London Underground 1987–1990 h/t: flashbak

Returning to London after a three year absence I felt that the Underground had become a microcosm of modern day London with its overcrowding and often tense and claustrophobic environment, dilapidated stations, broken lifts and escalators and patchwork renovation work acting as a backdrop to the overcrowded trains and fitful service.

These pictures were taken around the time of the King’s Cross disaster – an major underground fire in one of London’s main underground stations which caused multiple deaths and injuries. The threat of fire was not the only safety worry; fear of violence was becoming a real worry or a sizeable minority of travellers, particularly women.

The discomfort will often show in the body and facial movements of the passengers. Travelling on the underground seems to create a that vacuum of mind and soul. People lie, perch and hang to gain greater comfort from the often stressful journey.

The pictures shown here are a selection taken from two hundred images chosen and printed from the same number of films.





























If you want more awesome content, subscribe to 'Oh, Design You Trust,' our brand new Facebook page! Trust me, you won't be disappointed.

More Inspiring Stories

Photographer Chrissy Sparks Transforms Ordinary Women Into Glamorous Pin-Ups
Found Photos Show Fashion Styles of ’80s Young Women
"People Of The Twenty-First Century": Photographer Spent 20 Years Documenting Fashion Trends Worn By People Around The World
This Artist Recreates John Wick Scenes With Miniature Figures
Every Morning, This Photographer Captures The Incredible Style Of An 83yo Tailor
Martin Caulfield Services Some Of The Last Remaining Gas Street Lamps In The Capital
Pet Amnesty Day: Exotic Animals Surrendered and Adopted
Audrey Hepburn: Portraits of an Icon
Portraits and Dreams: Snapshots of Appalachian Children in Kentucky c. 1975
Vintage Photos Show Men’s Fashion Styles in the 1980s
Apple Highlights Best Photos Shot On iPhone Around The World
This Woman Had Her Face Photoshopped In Over 25 Countries To Examine Global Beauty Standards
Sensual Fine Art Self Portraits by Beth Parnaby
Year 2014 from Space
Spectacular Winning Images of the International Portrait Photographer of the Year 2021
Photographer Mayan Toledano Captures Daily Routines Of Female Israeli Soldiers
Heroes: Portraits Of 35 Frontline Workers That We Turned Into A Billboard In The Center Of Warsaw
"Hong Kong Hallucinations": Fantastic Urban Photography By Johannes Heuckeroth
"Freezing The City That Never Sleeps": A Brooklyn Chemist's 1800s Photos Capture New York In Motion
These Images Give A Rare Insight Into The Life Of A 19th Century Indian Maharajah
Amazing Vintage Photographs Documented Inca Culture And Life In Peruvian Andes, Captured By Martin Chambi In The Early 20th Century
Victoria’s Secret Angel Candice Swanepoel Sensual Photoshoot for Prabal Gurung
What If Abstract Models Were Real People? Photographer Imagines What The Subjects In Famous Paintings Would Look Like!
2016 Siena International Photography Awards Winners