Alumna Art on the Underground

Her piece ‘Circle Line’ was exhibited alongside hundreds of other top-class professional paintings, drawings and installations.

“Seeing my work on the wall of a proper gallery was quite surreal. It doesn’t feel too long ago that my art was on the walls of LEH and seeing it in amongst other incredibly impressive works was inspiring,” says Tabby.  “Meeting other artists and getting insight into the supportive and creative community out there was also a highlight. I often feel like exhibiting or professional artists are untouchable for a mere mortal like me but the welcoming and friendly atmosphere amongst the other women was such a delightful surprise.”

Tabby is currently tutoring online part time for Biology, Psychology and Art GCSE and A level students, while researching and preparing applications for a Master’s degree in either illustration or fine art.  She is also working part time in an independent shop which upcycles second hand clothes and jewellery to give them new life. In addition to designing their advertising, Tabby has started work on some creative projects, making items to potentially be sold there. She is also helping sister Maddy by producing illustrations and doodles to embellish Maddy’s sporting vlogs of her cycling races around the world.

Tabby was inspired to capture a slice of London life after developing an interest in people watching, especially on the tube. She explains: “These drawings kind of came out of nowhere. I felt like I had neglected my creativity for a while, so I set myself a project to create a piece of art in just four days.

I’ve always found people’s behaviour on the tube interesting. It’s fascinating how despondent and disconnected the etiquette is on London public transport. With phones and headphones to entertain us all now, it seems to be only getting worse. Generally, the passengers are completely detached from their surroundings - like they’re in their own little bubble. People enter a sort of suspended state when in public spaces, surrounded by strangers. I love drawing people, especially using a simple line and challenging myself to use as little detail as possible while still capturing their essence or mood. How lovely it is to see all kinds of people sat side by side, yet how sad it is that most of them totally miss it because they’re constantly plugged in.”

We think Tabby’s simple line drawings are just stunning and will be watching her next steps with great interest.  Good luck Tabby.

If you are logged into your Holles Connect account, you will be able to see some more of Tabby's 'Circle Line' work below.