Is this the most colourful street in the UK? Shops and flats on east London road are given mural makeover with more than 600 litres of paint to give businesses a boost during pandemic
- The London Mural Company gave Aberfeldy Street, in Poplar, a colourful boost over the past six weeks
- They used more than 600 litres of paint and 200 spray cans to paint patterns donated by the community
- They hope to complete new lighting, pavement maintenance and shop signage by the end of this month
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A street in east London has been transformed after being hand-painted over the past six weeks to give it a colourful boost.
The London Mural Company used more than 600 litres of paint and 200 spray cans to transform Aberfeldy Street, Poplar, in a bid to kickstart the retail businesses forced to close due to coronavirus.
There are still a few more things to do before the street is finished, with new lighting, pavement maintenance and shop signage due to be completed by the end of this month.
The London Mural Company transformed Aberfeldy Street in Poplar, east London, by using more than 600 litres of paint and 200 spray cans to give it a colourful boost
Creative director of the London Mural Company Stewart Chromik said it was inspired by the Bangladeshi kantha tradition of recycling old textiles to create something new
Each building in the street is painted a different colour and with a different pattern, which were donated by the community
The walls and shutters have all been painted with colourful designs and patterns with a few more things, such as new lighting and shop signage, to do before it is finished
There are still a few more things to do before the street is finished, with new lighting, pavement maintenance and shop signage due to be completed by the end of this month.
Creative director of The London Mural Company Stewart Chromik said: ‘We had spent a previous six weeks hand painting and stencilling a huge range of designs across the buildings, flats, shops, shutters and stall risers.
‘We were contacted by Jan Kattein Architects just under a year ago.
‘They had been approached to transform the building frontages of Aberfeldy Street with a patchwork of colours and patterns.
The team have spent the previous six weeks hand painting and stencilling on the shop fronts, shutters and flats in the street
Two members of The London Mural Company hold the stencil up on one of the shop shutters and hand paint the design onto it
‘Inspired by Bangladeshi Kantha tradition of recycling old textiles to create something new and with patterns donated by the local community the aim was to celebrate the cultural identity of the local people – making this one of the most colourful streets in East London.
‘Working with meanwhilespace.com the unused stores on the street have been re-fitted providing new business owners and start-up companies the opportunity to apply to rent the spaces with a host of incentives.
‘We worked closely alongside Cuttle Construction, so on site around 15 people involved with painting.
Mr Chromik said the unused stores on the street have been taken over by new owners and start-up companies
All of the buildings are painted with a different colour and pattern in the project where 15 people were painting
The project was completed in a bid to kickstart businesses which had been closed during the coronavirus pandemic
Each building on is decorated with a different colour and a different pattern, with some in yellow, purple and pink
Mr Chromik said there are still some things to be done before the project is completed but it should be finished by the end of August
‘I couldn’t give an approximate amount but it’s definitely been well over 600 litres and over 200 spray cans.
‘The site is still undergoing work, with new lighting, pavement maintenance, and shop signage aiming to be completed by the end of August.
‘I think it looks fantastic, Jan Kattein have really transformed the street with their designs and direction.
‘The feedback from the local residents and community was extremely encouraging and positive throughout. It was definitely an inspiring project to be involved with.’
One of the flats has been painted with yellow, pink and navy blue paint with the railings outside yellow with blue, pink and red shapes
The London Mural Company said the paintings were completed by hand by a team of 15 who worked closely with Cuttle Construction