The paper night tube map has a new cover — it’s third, designed by London-based artist Marianna Simnett which shows a flock of luminous birds falling against a black night sky.

For the commission Simnett took inspiration from 24-hour context of the Night Tube – the species of birds painted, which include gulls, swifts and songbirds, all sleep on the wing during their long migrations.

The birds, much like London, defy the way we commonly conceive of the night.

The Night Tube cover series aims to support London-based artists in the early stages of their career by providing them with the opportunity to show their works to a vast audience across the city. Simnett’s commission is the third in the series, which began with Samara Scott in December 2016.

Three limited edition prints will be produced alongside the Night Tube map cover; which depict a sandpiper, songbird and a swift and can be purchased here.

Simnett works across installation, drawing, performance, painting and video; her work explores our increasingly digital lifestyle through a lens of embodied experience. Her work has positioned the body, in various states of transformation, that include surgical procedures, self-induced fainting and hanging upside down for prolonged periods, at the centre of an immaterial phenomena.

Forthcoming Art on the Underground’s commissions for 2018 include: