Pure Evil

Pure Evil, the artistic name of Charles Uzzell-Edwards (b. 1968), is a British graffiti and contemporary artist born in South Wales. The son of Welsh painter John Uzzell Edwards, he grew up surrounded by art before studying fashion and graphics in London.

In the 1990s, Edwards moved to California, where he worked as a designer and became immersed in the West Coast graffiti scene. Returning to London, he developed his distinctive visual language, initially through his now-iconic fanged bunny imagery and later through his celebrated Nightmare series.

The Nightmare series, featuring portraits of cultural icons marked by distinctive dripping tears, explores the darker side of celebrity, fame and popular culture. His work combines Pop Art influences with graffiti and street-art aesthetics, using mediums including spray paint, stencils, acrylic and screen printing.

On his return to London, Pure Evil became involved with Banksy’s Santa’s Ghetto project, an early connection that placed him within the emerging London street-art movement.

Pure Evil has exhibited internationally, including at Saatchi Gallery, London, and his work is held in collections worldwide. He continues to live and work in London, alongside running his own gallery in Shoreditch.