“We identified a space,
That was empty and going to waste,
We filled it full of colour,
And turned it into a creative place.”
Lyrics designed by local young people
The Chairman of North Tyneside council, counsellor Frank Lott, will successfully open the first ever positive urban art wall in North Tyneside at East Howdon underpass on the 4th April 2013 at 3PM.
The underpass has been running since May 2012 with the original idea coming from local graffiti artists, who approached the Phoenix Detached Youth Project about getting some legal spaces to spray-paint. This exciting space is used as a rolling canvas and is suitable for painting in all weathers. The idea is that local young people can take a photo of their art piece, which then can be repainted by others and can be used multiple times and keeps the underpass looking fresh. The young people made sure there was a clear set of rules using the underpass, which is a permission wall, and anyone wanting to paint at the wall needs to contact the Phoenix Detached Youth Project to gain permission at 01912585806,www.pdyp.org.
The youth sessions run every two weeks at the underpass with an urban art tutor, where they can learn valuable tips and secrets as to how to improve their styles and art work. Currently there are twenty local artists using the wall and over a hundred older urban artists accessing the wall. Percy Main Primary School has also been involved in painting snakes on the railings.
Comments from the local residents: “ It’s great it brightens up the place and gives the kids something to do on a Friday night and its better than to be scribbled on than in the past.
Can you keep painting the characters on the wall? Love the smurfette!”
