Ascension
A new large-scale mural intervention beneath a Leeds viaduct, transforming a site of everyday transit into a layered reflection on time, place, and perception. Rooted in the ancient identities of Elmet and Leodis—once densely forested territories that predate the city—the work draws together mythology, ecology, and contemporary experience within a single visual field. ‘Beneath the arches, something older is still breathing’. Before the viaduct carved its line through the city, this land held knowledge in soil, and story. The mural reflects that virtue, allowing buried memory to surface. Owls emerge as quiet witnesses—symbols of ancient knowledge, their bodies converge into a single, watchful eye: a shifting, psychedelic aperture through which time collapses. Extending a red thread from the artist’s earlier work with Nomad Clan Athena Rising.
Mission
Situated in Leeds—a city with a deeply rooted yet often understated cultural identity—the work acknowledges a place that has consistently contributed to the UK’s creative landscape, despite frequently being overshadowed by neighbouring cultural centres. As the city approaches Leeds 400, the mural stands as both recognition and proposition: that creativity here is not new, but enduring—embedded within the fabric of the landscape itself.
Vision
Forms appear embedded within the composition as though unearthed—sculptural, geological, suspended between erosion and becoming. Surrounding this, a cosmic field expands outward, situating the work beyond the immediate site and into a portal to another dimension
The mural has been funded by the government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund which is administered locally by the West Yorkshire Combined Authority.
The project is a collaboration between Leeds City Council, Groundwork Yorkshire, Wade’s Charity, Leeds Minster and Leeds Civic Trust.
