A major new site-specific mural by acclaimed London artist and illustrator Will Barras has been installed at Bow Bells in the City of London, as part of our comprehensive refurbishment of the HQ City office building.

Created in collaboration with Creative Debuts, Oranges & Lemons transforms John Milton Passage, the pedestrian route running adjacent to the building’s glass-box reception, into a vibrant large-scale public artwork inspired by the movement, energy and layered history of the City.

Installed over seven days in April, the mural was painted live while the passage – connecting Bow Churchyard to Bread Steet – remained fully open, allowing passers-by to stop, watch the work evolve and speak directly with the artist throughout the process.

Will’s commission was to develop a work responding directly to the site’s history and surroundings, with the resulting mural drawing inspiration from the nursery rhyme Oranges and Lemons, which references a series of historic London churches, including nearby St Mary-le-Bow.

The flowing forms and layered paint strokes draw on both the movement of people through the Square Mile and the resonant sound patterns of bell-ringing methods. Will developed the concept through a combination of figurative storytelling and abstraction, distilling the area’s histories, rhythms and communities into an expressive visual composition that shifts as people move through the space.

Will is a London-based painter, illustrator and animation director whose work is known for its fluid sense of movement and narrative-driven compositions. Originally part of Bristol’s renowned street art scene and a founding member of the influential Scrawl collective, he has exhibited and live-painted internationally across Europe, the US and Asia.

Originally designed by David Walker Architects in 2007, Bow Bells has undergone a comprehensive refurbishment by Fabrix, with the mural forming part of our broader vision to enhance the experience of the building and its surrounding public realm.