The Only True Paradise

The iconic (now demolished) Sheffield city centre landmark, the hole in the road, was a network of subterranean underpasses, which converged into a large open circular plaza underneath a roundabout. A hub of the city with thousands passing through daily. The nostalgia and lament held for this piece of iconic 1960s brutalist architecture is intriguing. ‘The only true paradise is paradise lost’ is a quote from the book In Search of Lost Time, by Marcel Proust, where he writes about the impermanence of time and memory. Do we live life retrospectively and mourn our paradises lost?

The social, economic and physiological aspects of that time, the people and the hole in the road, are conveyed through photoshop montages incorporating screen prints, photos and plans along with ink paintings of characters from the landmark on coloured acrylic sprayed circles. Specific colours, textures and marks elude to the past, present and future of the people and the place.

‘the contradictions of humanity are fully exposed; fantasy and reality, strength and suppression, and the personal and the political all writhe together in circling dialogue’

Paula Rego

: Bench Separation 1 indian ink and acrylic paint and spray paint on 640gsm watercolour paper 37cm x 37cm The hole in the road was frequently used as a meeting place for youth and courting couples. I purposely separated these teenagers who were sat on the bench together. It’s a kind of language separation between them and a certain expectant tension. A socially distant romance.

: Bench Separation 2 indian ink and acrylic paint and spray paint on 640gsm watercolour paper 37cm x 37cm

: Onwards indian ink and acrylic spray paint on 640gsm watercolour paper 37cm x 37cm The hopeful shopper gliding through looking towards a better future, an orange background alluding to the history of the area and struggle of the Sheffield poet Ebeneezer Eillot and his fight to repeal the corn laws, which drove many people into abject poverty.

: Onwards on concrete

: Striding Through indian ink and acrylic spray paint on 640gsm watercolour paper 37cm x 37cm

: Down But Not Out indian ink, acrylic paint and spray paint on 640gsm watercolour paper 37cm x 37cm

: Down and Out indian ink, acrylic paint and spray paint on 640gsm watercolour paper 37cm x 37cm The down and out struggling to survive a hidden statistic. People pass by as he fades into the background. A red background echoes of the dark history of German bombing during the second World War and the bodies still remaining entombed in the surrounding areas, people pass by unaware of hidden tragedy.

: Shopping indian ink and acrylic spray paint on 640gsm watercolour paper 37cm x 37cm An affluent shopper passing through a city planners new utopian dream on their way to up market shops, a solitary figure on a blue circle – a nod to more prosperous times.

: No Go indian ink, acrylic paint and spray paint on 640gsm watercolour paper 37cm x 37cm Gangs night-time paradise, eerie figures claim their territory and hold on to it as long as they can. A dark threatening and menacing place enter at your own risk.

: The Dash indian ink and acrylic spray paint on 640gsm watercolour paper 37cm x 37cm The optimism of youth, an exciting dash through the circular plaza eager to view the fish tank and the elusive fish. The future is bright – orange?

: Pondering indian ink and acrylic spray paint on 640gsm watercolour paper 37cm x 37cm

: Own It indian ink and acrylic spray paint on 640gsm watercolour paper 37cm x 37cm

: Fish Tank Joy indian ink, acrylic paint and spray paint on 640gsm watercolour paper 37cm x 37cm

: work in progress

: All the World’s a Stage photoshop montage Is a testament to the people, their optimism, strength in the face of adversity. Bands and musicians would often be playing in the hole in the road, a moment of joy, lifting spirits and making the place their own. It’s also about hope and hard work of Ebenzeer Elliot who fought to repeal the corn laws and make life better for ordinary folk.

: Blue Monday photoshop montage References the loss of jobs in the steel factories and hard times of the 1980s as well as the decaying state of the hole in the road.

: The Clean Up photoshop montage

: Nowhere To Go photoshop montage