From Derby Graduate to Public Artist: Syahi Studio

Known professionally as Syahi, Adoniah Haslam graduated from the University of Derby in 2024 with a BA (Hons) Illustration and now runs his own creative practice, Syahi Studio. His work spans illustration, fine art, live painting and mural design, and he is now looking forward to developing his practice further from a dedicated studio space at Banks Mill. 

The new 12-month residency comes at an exciting point in Syahi’s creative career. Earlier this year, his design was selected as the winner of a competition to create a new mural for Derby’s Vaillant Live events venue. 

 

 

The 3,500-capacity venue invited artists from across Derby to submit a bold and colourful design celebrating the city and its community. Following a shortlist of four finalists, Syahi’s design was selected as the winning entry. The finished mural has since been installed on the venue on Becket Street. 

For Syahi, seeing the design transformed from an idea into a large-scale mural was a memorable moment. 

“My first thought was ‘oh my gosh!’. The mural is much bigger than when I first saw it being printed but seeing it up – and how vibrant it is – makes me feel very proud.” 

He hopes the mural will become something that local people can connect with, adding: 

“The way I see it, this is for Derby. I really hope that when people pass it on the street, they feel a sense of being part of something bigger than themselves.” 

Now, with his Banks Mill residency secured, Syahi will have a dedicated space to build on this momentum. He plans to use the studio to focus on developing self-published comic books and paintings, while continuing to grow his wider creative practice and establish himself as an independent creative practitioner. 

 

 

The Banks Mill Student Residency Award, delivered through the University of Derby’s Enterprise and Entrepreneurship Service, provides emerging creatives with a fully funded 12-month studio, alongside opportunities to develop new work and business skills, connect with other creative practitioners and showcase their work. 

For Syahi, the residency provides an opportunity to take the next step after university while remaining part of Derby’s creative community – and to turn the momentum of recent projects such as the Vaillant Live mural into new ideas, new work and new opportunities. 

His journey is already demonstrating what can happen when emerging creative talent is given the space and support to develop – from graduating from the University of Derby, to seeing his work in the public realm, we’re excited to see what he has in store for this new chapter at Banks Mill Studios.