Artist Lois O’Hara’s work is a stunning study on the positive effects of bright colours on people and places. Much like her hometown of Brighton, with its pastel houses and shops, O’Hara’s art is cheerful, with bright pinks and yellows and blues. For the latest instalment of the BUILDHOLLYWOOD family’s Your Space Or Mine project, O’Hara will be putting up billboards and posters in Brighton, bringing even more colour to the seaside town.

O’Hara works across different disciplines: mural painting, design, and illustration. She’s particularly fascinated by fluidity and bold colour combinations: “I’m interested in capturing the fluidity of an image in motion,” she says. At a time when many people are looking to feel uplifted and positive, work like O’Hara’s, with its flowing shapes and bright colours, is more necessary than ever.

Displayed on billboards across Brighton and Hove, her collaboration reads, “everything is an opportunity,” in her trademark wavy text against a background of bright, flowing pink, orange and blue shapes. It’s a reminder to use this time carefully, if you can, not just to reflect but to do things you really want to: start new hobbies and projects, or keep in touch with friends.

The billboard is a testament to O’Hara’s optimism: “For me it’s important that I try and find something positive in every bad situation, perhaps something that I have learnt,” she tells us. The intention with her work is always to uplift, and on a large scale like this, it’s even easier to bring joy to many. “During this time, I think it’s particularly important that I do this with my work, in any way I can, which makes this the perfect collaboration,” she says, adding: “I wanted to create something bold and clear. Almost a strip back of what I usually do, whilst still keeping it in style.”

O’Hara’s positive, playful outlook on life feeds into her work’s ethos, making her projects, which are often on large scales, uplifting. She’s transformed many outdoor spaces, from walls to basketball courts, and her work with us is powerful, with a simple goal: “I want people to walk by and feel positively powerful and uplifted.”

www.loisohara.co.uk