Young Sheffield artist chosen to paint large scale mural in Orchard Square

Will Rea, who lives near Ecclesall Road, is a freelance illustrator and has previously created artwork for places such as the Showroom cinema on Paternoster Row, and Bungalows and Bears on Division Street.

After answering an open call to Sheffield-based artists, the 22-year-old has now won the opportunity to create a large piece of artwork in the Orchard Square shopping centre, covering a 15-metre space which will encompass the staircases and possibly the pedestrianised area in the middle.

The Sheffield Hallam University graduate, who will begin work next month said that, although the mural will be the largest piece of artwork he has ever embarked on, he is excited for the challenge.

“This project is an incredible opportunity, not only for furthering my freelance career as a recent graduate, but also because it is a chance for my work to be regarded as a piece of Sheffield’s ever-growing visual art scene,” Will, who is otherwise known as ‘Willustration’, said.

“Installing this piece will allow me to give something back to Sheffield’s ever so welcoming community. I plan to encapsulate the can-do attitude of the people that live here, while also referencing the industrial heritage of the city. I can’t wait to start.”

In August, Orchard Square’s owners London and Associate Properties, who are working in collaboration with Museums Sheffield, commissioned the large-scale piece of public art.

They asked Sheffield-based artists to come up with a creative design around the brief of ‘what Sheffield means to them’ and received a huge response with over 30 applications, which was then whittled down to a shortlist of four.

Nicola Blake, from LAP, said Will was chosen for the industrial references in his design and his style of work which feeds into the ‘exciting’ street art scene already in the city.

“Sheffield is such a cutting-edge city with incredible talent,” she added. “We want to showcase and support that talent with public art that everyone can enjoy. Will is an emerging young artist – we are delighted he has been selected. We are also developing a collection of pop-up restaurants within the centre this autumn to nurture local food entrepreneurs and the public art project complements the spirit of that initiative.”

Having recently completed a mural for the main room in The Leadmill, Will is now committing his full time to the Orchard Square project and is in the process of gaining his IPAF – International Powered Access Federation – operator licence, which is needed to use a cherry picker.