Artist Tom Buddle's illustrations of passengers on the Tube has become an internet hit (From East London and West Essex Guardian Series)

Artist Tom Buddle's illustrations of passengers on the Tube has become an internet hit

2:19pm Monday 23rd November 2009 in

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THE next time you are snoozing on the Tube you may become an unsuspecting muse for an illustrator documenting life on the Underground.

A woman clutching a cello, a man in a hoody sleeping and numerous commuters with their noses buried in a book are among the many illustrations of subterranean life drawn by artist Tom Buddle as he passes his time travelling to work.

The 22-year-old art graduate from Leytonstone, who declined to be pictured because he does not want to be recognised by those he observes, has attracted a strong following to his Blog.

It features his distinct portraits, some of which remain incomplete as passengers alight at their stops, and observations about the people featured.

He said: “I have always drawn as a way of keeping myself busy and became interested in it as a documentary media while at University.

“On the Tube you have a huge cross-section of Londoners in a small, confined space - so it is a perfect opportunity to see how they react to each other.

“It is like a waiting room with people trying to avoid eye contact, which is why I think reading on the Tube is such a big thing.”

The former Leytonstone Secondary School pupil, of ??? Road, admits some passengers stare back at him when they catch him observing - but he has not yet been confronted.

He added: “You get a bit of leniency as an illustrator as oppose to a photographer because it is less threatening, but it is my interpretation of people and they might not like it.”

In his Blog, he talks about his irritation at some passengers, such as men who sit with their knees wide apart and those who read other passengers' newspaper over their shoulders.

The freelance illustrator works as a spotlight operator at a West End theatre.