Last night Charlotte and I were on our way to a music concert, changing at Kings Cross st Pancras. Amongst the hustle and bustle of rush hour we were both stopped in our tracks, beneath the dirt and grime of the underground we discovered what beauty was left behind from advertisements and posters stuck up on each wall, the more we looked the more we found - Torn posters revealing eyes and hands in beautiful accidental compositions. They reminded me of  Jasper Johns and Robert Rasenburg paintings and montages.

Next time you miss the tube take a moment to look at your surroundings you may be surprised in what you find.

Imagine a city stripped clean of all its advertising. No billboards. No posters. No Adshels. No nothing. In December 2006, this fantastical statement became a harsh reality for São Paulo, Brazil. Known as ‘Lei Cidade Limpa’, the Clean City Law, it was an initiative of Mayor, Gilberto Kassab, and intended to cleanse the city of what he dubbed its ‘visual pollution’.

Shigeo Fukuda died on 11th January 2009. Born in Tokyo, he was internationally known for his witty and thought provoking design, turning complex problems into simple graphic solutions. Fukuda liked to use optical illusions within his work and often designed for political and environmental issues. More images after the jump…