Ed Sheeran’s Cosmic Brushstrokes Land in London

A candid look at the singer’s abstract art, born from silence and a parking lot. Between sold-out tours and chart-topping ballads, Ed Sheeran has found a different stage to perform on. No mic, no spotlight , just a paint-splattered floor in a forgotten parking lot in Soho.

Photos : Heni Gallery/kbsp/London/DR

Breathing between the verses

Until August 1st, the Heni Gallery in London hosts Parking Cosmic Paintings, a charitable exhibition showcasing a quieter but no less vibrant side of the British pop star. Ed Sheeran picked up painting in 2019, after two years of nonstop touring with Divide. It started as a form of relief, a way to unwind when music took a back seat. “I paint when I’m not working on a record. Just something creative to keep my brain active,” he posted on Instagram, with characteristic understatement. But beneath the casual tone lies something more visceral. Inspired by Jackson Pollock’s explosive techniques, the canvases burst with color and movement. No clear subject, no tight control — just rhythm, energy, and pigment.

An abandoned parking lot, transformed

For this series, Ed Sheeran chose a derelict space in Soho as his studio. There, in the quiet grit of concrete and shadows, he created pieces like Splash Planet, the painting that graced the cover of his 2020 single Afterglow. Now, he’s selling a selection of works, paintings and prints, with individual pieces priced at £900. Part of the proceeds will support the Ed Sheeran Foundation, launched in January 2025 to fund music education programs in schools.

Photos : Heni Gallery/kbsp/London/DR

Art as a conversation, not a performance

What unfolds at Heni Gallery isn’t a vanity project. It’s a whisper, one that shows Ed Sheeran without stage presence, only pigment and silence. The art doesn’t shout. It waits. It feels like the hush between lyrics, the part of the song where the melody still lingers but the sound has faded. And that may be the essence of it: in these cosmic splatters born from asphalt, we catch a glimpse of the artist away from fame’s spotlight, quietly reimagining how to connect. Not louder, but deeper.

In brief

HENI Gallery

6-10 Lexington St, London W1F 0LB, United Kingdom

Monday – Sunday, from 10am – 6pm