Stuart Jarvis

Stuart grew up in the heart of the Midlands, his home city Birmingham. Its post-war concrete skyline was so influential in his emerging years in art school. Decades of heavy industry, the towering endless concrete – the city now re-shaped, reborn was once unforgiving and soulless. The relic of its post-war imaginings can still be found walking the tow paths under the city’s infamous Gravelly Hill Interchange, more commonly known as ‘Spaghetti Junction.’ A place Jarvis continually revisits and features in his most recent body of work. More than just a creative muse, the underpass is a sanctuary for reflection on a landscape and skyline now thought responsible for his fascination with the built environment.

His expressive use of charcoal aims to capture a sense of urban decay toward structures that prioritise function over form. He aims to find a sense of awe and allure in buildings regarded as ugly, ignored or unwanted. And hopes, through his work, others will discover their timeless elegance and charm.

The ‘linear’ world, both in architecture but also the landscape more broadly, is still his fascination.