This May, local Yorkshire-based artist, Safrana Art, collaborated with Huddersfield-based organisation, Growing Works, to produce a fun, nature-themed mural at their community allotment.
The mural was designed and painted onto an equipment container on the allotment patch using leftover paint purchased at affordable prices from Community RePaint Bradford.
Safrana Art let us know:
“As an artist, I really like the idea of brightening up community spaces and I approached Growing Works to help with exactly this. They wanted to brighten up the equipment container on their allotment with a natural-looking, organic design that blended with the surroundings while branding the container so that the community feel a sense of belonging when using the space.”
By purchasing the paint needed for the project from Community RePaint Bradford, Growing Works were able to pick up all the paint needed for the project at a fraction of the usual retail price.
Community RePaint Bradford is one of the larger schemes within the Community RePaint network. Each year, the scheme collects over 49,000 litres of reusable, leftover paint from local retailers, businesses and traders.
This paint is sorted, processed and quality checked before being made available for sale at £1.80 per litre. Read more about Community RePaint Bradford in their Meet the Scheme interview.
When asked about their experience picking up the paint needed for the project, Safrana Art let us know:
“I was able to work closely with the Growing Works team who happily collected the paints from Community RePaint Bradford. With the helpful advice of the staff at the scheme, we were able to choose the perfect paints needed for the project, that would work on the exterior surface of the container.
“The possibility of mixing colours was great for us too. I usually prefer to use acrylic water based paint as it is easier to clean, and for this kind of price, it’s also easier for other people to handle too.”
The allotment space is used to teach and encourage local members of the community to grow their own food and eat healthier, with gardening skills and knowledge taught through different workshops at the allotment hub.
Throughout the project, Safrana Art also encouraged the individuals who use the space to become involved with painting the mural too.
Safrana Art said:
“The users of Growing Works allotment were so responsive to the mural, and the project was completed in two sessions in early May. I love using the spring and summer months to create community pieces as the weather is usually so lovely!”
Safrana Art has been involved with creating other projects in north-west England, using leftover paint from Community RePaint network. Find out more about her past projects here:
- Butterfly House gets a makeover using leftover paint
- Leftover paint in Manchester used for community Church mural
- Muslim Youth Foundation given a repaint by Safrana
For further details about Safrana Art’s work, check out her Instagram page here! To find out more about Growing Works, click here.
Community RePaint has over 65 schemes across the country, providing affordable paint for community and home projects, from £2 a litre. If you need paint for your home, community project, or a mural like this one, find your nearest scheme here.