Always keen to coordinate projects that make use of waste materials, Jade Mitchell recently organised for a graffiti mural to be painted by young volunteers, using Community RePaint paint (collected from Community RePaint Hackney) as part of the Creative Landscapes project.
Reclaimed by the Bankside Open Spaces Trust, the legal site in Southwark, London had previously been vandalised and tagged, and the surrounding area used as a dumping site. The ground was littered with broken glass and discarded electrical goods and overgrown bushes scaled the hoarding, before the team set to work.
Initially, it was local children and young people interested in trying out graffiti who volunteered to assist artist Neonita, but it quickly turned into a real community effort with people stopping by to watch or help paint the urban fox design.
The majority of the paint for the mural came from Community RePaint, with 20 litres of emulsion being used for the background of the design and to fill in areas of block colour, whilst the finishing touches and shading of the mural were achieved with cans of spray paint.
“As household paint can be harmful to the environment the best way to dispose of it is to use it up!” said Creative Landscapes Events Organiser, Jade Mitchell, “By painting the graffiti mural we used up an unwanted resource, made the local area more attractive, and provided a volunteering opportunity for local children and young Londoners.”
Creative Landscapes: http://wasteam.co.uk/creative-landscapes
Neonita: http://neonita.co.uk
Community RePaint Hackney run by Children’s SCRAP Project: www.childrensscrap.co.uk
