Public Mural Project— Coldham's Common,
Cambridge
A site-specific mural by Stefanie Schuessler (Atelier Lyrialo), currently in progress.
This mural is being painted directly onto a shipping container at Coldham’s Common in Cambridge.
The work evolves on site and is updated as it develops.
Project Introduction
This public mural project at Coldham's Common began in October 2025, when the commission was awarded to artist and muralist Stefanie Schuessler of Atelier Lyrialo by Cambridge City Council Cultural Services.
Seven months later, the mural is being painted and brought to life on site. Inspired by the landscape, wildlife and changing seasons of Coldham's Common, the work continues to develop in real time.
Special thanks to Cambridge City Council Cultural Services for commissioning the project and supporting opportunities for artists to contribute to the visual life of Cambridge. Particular thanks to Abby Pollock and Ben Hallworth, whose tireless work behind the scenes has helped make the project possible.
Commissioned by Cambridge City Council Cultural Services
Layout Process
The mural is developed directly on site, beginning with surface preparation and layout decisions.
Cutting Leaf Templates
The leaf form is calculated directly from the layout drawing and translated into cut cardboard templates, establishing proportion and structure before placement.
Positioned Cardboard Template
The cut template is then positioned on the container surface to test and confirm spatial relationship within the overall composition.
Once positioned, the layout is fixed onto the container surface, locking the structure in place and preparing the surface for painting.
Leaf Layout Fixed on Site
First Layers of Paint
With the layout established, the first painted layers begin to define the mural. Colour, form, and atmosphere gradually emerge across the surface.
Leaf Layout Applied
The initial layout is transferred onto the shipping container, with colour and form blocked into taped leaf structures to establish composition.
Fox in Terracotta Layer
The fox emerges in a terracotta base tone, establishing its presence within the overall mural composition.
Mid and foreground areas of the fox begin to build texture and depth, while the head remains in an earlier construction stage.
Fox Surface Development
Through early morning light the fox returned…
The Fox Emerges
Layer by layer, the fox emerges from the initial drawing, developing texture, character and presence within the mural.
A Fox Quietly Appears...
The fox begins to emerge through refined sketching, with facial structure already established while remaining in an early painted state.
Between Texture & Precision
The mid section of the fox develops into layered fur texture, balancing painterly surface work with structural definition across the shoulder and rib areas.
The fox reaches completion in its facial expression, with fully resolved character, texture and presence within the composition.
Long Live the Fox!
Beginnings of a Cow Mural
The second mural is now underway. Meadow colours, distant trees and the first landscape forms are beginning to shape the scene, while a new animal presence gradually emerges from the paint. As work continues, this page will be updated to follow the mural's progress.
Soft Meadow in Formation
The second mural has begun. Layers of sky, meadow and distant woodland are gradually establishing the landscape, while the first hints of a resident of the Common begin to appear. Please visit again to see how the mural develops over the coming weeks.
Tree Within the Meadow
A small tree becomes a focal point within the landscape, holding an olive-toned trunk and shifting between abstraction and structure through layered blues and a single yellow line.
The cow enters the composition in an early stage of development, still unfinished and unrefined, emerging directly from the painted meadow environment.
The Cow Appears
A digital layout combined with a photograph of the container, offering a glimpse of how the mural may look as work progresses on site.
Working Outdoors
Each day on the Common brings different light, colours and discoveries. Reference photographs, sketches, passing conversations and moments observed on site all find their way into the mural as it develops.
Working from Reference
Reference photographs and sketches are used throughout the process, alongside the changing mural itself on the container. Ideas are tested, adjusted and refined from my personal "director's chair".
A Studio Outdoors
Each day on the Common, a small temporary studio appears in front of the container. Brushes, paints, sketches and materials are laid out on the ground as the mural slowly takes shape in response to its surroundings.
At 8:41 am, morning light filtered through the surrounding trees, creating shifting flecks and soft patterns across the mural. These fleeting moments sometimes find their way into the painting as subtle traces of the Common itself.
Borrowing the Common's Light
On the Ladder
Working on site means constantly shifting perspective as the mural develops. From the ladder, the image becomes more legible, and earlier uncertainties begin to settle into clearer relationships of form, colour and space.
Shifting Perspective
From the ladder, the mural reads differently than at ground level. Forms that felt unresolved begin to connect and the composition starts to reveal its overall structure.
The Mural in Progress
At this stage, the painted surface continues to evolve, with colour, form and detail gradually settling into place as the composition develops on the container.
Smaller areas of the mural continue to adjust as the overall composition develops, with each section responding to the balance of the wider scene.
Details Finding Their Place
More to come—please visit again.
You Have Asked…
While painting on the Common, many conversations have unfolded naturally with people passing by—walkers, cyclists, children and visitors who paused to ask questions or share thoughts.
One visitor wondered why the fox was carrying a ball rather than a chicken.
A young visitor thought the fox was carrying an apple and was delighted by the idea.
Someone suggested adding something red to the cow mural—and we realised the poppies in the meadow were already quietly doing that job.
Others shared their own fox sightings from around the Common, sometimes much closer than expected.
One of the most rewarding parts of painting on the Common have been these encounters along the way—the questions, observations and small moments of curiosity that arise naturally as people pass by.
I am deeply grateful to be able to work in this setting, surrounded by the landscape and the people who move through it each day. It is a privilege to paint here, within such a living and shared place.
The Common, as it continues…
The copyrighted content created by Stefanie Schuessler may not be used for training artificial intelligence or machine learning algorithms.
Atelier by Stefanie Schuessler—Lyrialo · Cambridge · UK · © 2025 All rights reserved