Three new Rye Lane murals are being designed in collaboration with Peckham residents and a south London food charity ahead of their March unveiling.
Get it Done, a south London arts community group, collaborated with local non-profit, Peckham Soup Kitchen, to host a creative drawing workshop for residents and staff last week.
A spokesperson at the charity said they discussed food poverty and insecurity, a prevalent issue within Peckham and the borough of Southwark.
Soup kitchen volunteer and artist, Amelia Naraine, 27, took part in the workshop which involved visiting a Rye Lane fruit stand and sketching their fruit.
Get it Done, said that these sketches from Naraine and other Peckham residents who took part will help inspire the ‘Flavours of Rye Lane’ mural.
Naraine said that, as an aspiring artist, she has also been offered the opportunity to help paint the ‘Flavours of Rye Lane’ mural, which she referred to as a “cool opportunity.”
A soup kitchen spokesperson said: “We enjoyed being a small part of their big story.”
Get it Done are supporting three Peckham artists create murals that will be displayed along Rye Lane.
The three murals will each depict a different theme relating to the area, including Peckham’s musical history, food culture and local activism.
Over 70 south London artists applied, with six being shortlisted for the three murals: ‘Live from the Rye’, ‘Flavours of Rye Lane’ and ‘Resistance & Resilience’.
The shortlist was then slimmed down to Nina Grazette, Regan Gilflin and Valeria Salinas-Toro.
Selected mural artist, Grazette, 39, praised a community-led outdoor exhibition, showcasing the shortlisted artists’ mural designs, held outside south London cinema, the Peckhamplex.
She said the event was inclusive and family friendly, as Peckham residents selected their favourite artwork amongst the shortlist.
Picture Credit: Nina Grazette
Grazette explained that her mural, ‘Live from the Rye’, showcases the musical history of Peckham from the past to present.
She said: “It’s a musical walk through Peckham’s musical history … like a street party of music”.
Grazette added that she is including elements from the 80s and 90s that long-term residents would know and recognise.
A resident of Peckham for 20 years, Grazette said she understands what the community want to see displayed in her mural and in particular, she hopes to celebrate the multiculturalism of the area.
She added: “[Peckham] has come a long way and grown up a bit … there’s a real melting pot of culture”.
Southwark Council are currently preparing the wall on Rye Lane with the artists scheduled to start painting, the first week of March. The murals will be unveiled shortly after.
Feature Picture Credit: Unsplash free to use License
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