Banksy's recent spree, brightening all corners of the capital with his series of animal artworks, should get everyone primed for the London Mural Festival.
The capital’s biggest celebration of street art runs from 5th-29th September with a month-long events programme and live art in action on the streets of 15 boroughs.
Themed around 'Connection' some of the biggest names in street art will present 100 thought-provoking and inspiring murals - adding to the 75 produced for the inaugural edition in 2020.
“London Mural Festival leaves a long-lasting visual legacy across the city," said Dr Lee Bofkin, Global Street Art Co-Founder and CEO.
"Most of the 75 murals painted at our first edition four years ago still look great, and we hope the 100 murals we’re adding will last as long! The hard work, talent and love pouring out of the festival is unmatched.”
Rose Wangen-Jones MD of visitlondon.com added: "We’re really excited to be welcoming back London’s biggest celebration of street art this September. London is home to one of the biggest collections of street art in the world, and we can’t wait to see more pieces popping up across the capital for visitors to discover."
The first mural to be unveiled is ‘A Lasting Place’ by Spanish artist Sebas Velasco at Brixton's South Lambeth Estate. Located at 12, Cobbett Street the artwork depicts a young man before Brixton's train line at night.
Velasco said: "I have always been very interested in social architecture, but I had no idea that London (particularly Brixton) was so rich in these aesthetics.
"The wall, like the neighbourhood and the sitter had so much character and I was grateful for the creative freedom and support from the team in allowing me the space to explore this."
During the festival Tea Jurisic and David Maker will be transforming two sites at the 1980s Surrey Quays Shopping Centre in Canada Water into an outdoor art installation centred around storytelling, featuring a playful cast of characters and objects.
Bellmouth Promenade in Canary Wharf will host three new figurative murals by Hixxy, Venessa Scott and Zoë Power reflecting the diverse community.
Sophie Mess will create a new botanical work at The Stage in Shoreditch, and Sr. X will bring his signature pop-art infused style to a new work at Paternoster Square.
The German Embassy has commissioned a mural by Hunto at their central London headquarters to mark the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989.
Other artists in the line-up include Aches; Bezt Etam; D*Face; David Shillinglaw; eL Seed; Gary Stranger; Itaewon; Marija Tiurina; Roids MSK; Rosie Woods; Seb Lester; Tez; Zabou; and Zomby.
A full list of mural locations and artists will be unveiled shortly, with a festival map to explore the artworks and tickets will go on sale for a programme of workshops, live painting, arts activities and street art tours via londonmuralfestival.com.
The opening Pop Up is on Saturday 7th September, at Kachette, in East London where visitors can browse studio works from artists in the Festival Exhibition, or pick up a can and try their hand at spray painting with the help of street artists, with interactive mural painting, drop-in workshops including UV life drawing - all to a soundtrack of DJs from Voices Radio.
On Sunday 8th September, at the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, there's a giant interactive illustrated map of London by Angry Dan, a British artist and limerick writer.
His map at Mandeville Place features a colossal new artwork of London - which took him over 1,000 hours to create. Visitors will be invited to remove a piece of the map to take home with them so it will disappear over the course of the day.
Then on Saturday 14th September artlovers can help create a large-scale community mural at The Maze in Brent Cross Town Park.
Dive into a kaleidoscope of colour and get creative at an interactive workshop, led by artist and doodle maker, HATCH. Kids and adults can help create this collaborative mural and get lost in The Maze in the surroundings of Claremont Park.
Elsewhere there's a calligraphy workshop at Global Street Art's gallery in Old Street by Seb Lester, who is also producing a mural for the festival featuring the words ‘Find What You Love’.
And the Street Art Tours feature a variety of stops including new murals from the festival, with the chance to discover the origins of London’s street art scene.
Justine Simons OBE, Deputy Mayor for Culture and the Creative Industries, said: "With more than 100 artists taking part, it is a wonderful example of how murals transform our city into a gallery and bring free art to everyone, helping to build a better city for everyone."
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