While studying at Central Saint Martins, designer Jeffrey Miller developed From The Underground, a material-led project that had a bold premise: turning London’s transport waste into ceramic tiles. Originally presented as part of his MA in Material Futures, the project continues to resonate for its blend of sustainability, craft, and architectural heritage.
Drawing on his background in ceramics and a deep interest in the origin of materials, Miller set out to rethink how we source and value the components of our built environment. Though tiles are iconic to the London Underground, their production often relies on virgin materials extracted through open-pit mining, a process largely disconnected from the city’s physical and cultural fabric.
Miller’s approach was to source materials directly from the system itself. He worked with excavated London clay collected during tunneling projects and iron oxide-rich dust formed by train wheels grinding against steel tracks. These byproducts, usually treated as waste, became the foundation of a new, contextually rich tile design.
The pieces were cast using early 20th-century moulds originally designed by Leslie Green, the architect behind many of the Underground’s most historic stations, and produced in collaboration with H&E Smith, a manufacturer known for restoring the network’s ceramic finishes. The result was a material that looked backward and forward at once: rooted in London’s architectural legacy but conceived for a more sustainable future.
Since its debut, From The Underground has sparked conversations around how infrastructure, design, and waste can coexist more consciously. Miller has continued exploring how these materials can scale, working with TfL and research institutions to consider broader applications within the network and beyond.
Even now, the project stands as a compelling example of circular design, connecting place, process, and storytelling into one sharp-edged, dust-tinged tile.
