MyMural Project Update - Walthamstow

Thank you to all who voted and provided feedback on the proposal to paint a mural on the Brookfield Avenue estate, overlooking Shernhall Street.

Following our request for feedback - via the survey sent to Brookfield Avenue residents and the surrounding houses on Shernhall Street and on social media platforms - we received hundreds of comments, likes and reactions to the proposals.

The calculations:

• We counted the votes online, via the form and all positive facebook comments and interactions
• All positive/negative comments have been counted as one per person (i.e. multiple comments from one person have not been counted as a new vote.
• There may be some duplication of facebook vs. survey votes due to anonymous comments but each positive and negative was included - therefore the proportion of positive to negative will not be affected.

After careful counting, the overall reaction was 74% in favour of the artwork proposed.

Despite the positive reaction to the mural - especially during our door knocking on Brookfield Avenue - the push back received on social media (specifically from residents whose property looks onto the proposed wall) has put us in the position where we, and the Council, do not feel we can carry out the project with the artwork in the survey. It is not, nor has it ever been, or intention to cause upset in the work we do, so we have given long and serious consideration on the next steps.

What was clear throughout all of the comments regardless of negative or positive there was a shared agreement that a mural would be welcomed if the design were different. We are keen to find a positive resolution and have developed a number of solutions which we hope will do so.

With the support of the Waltham Forest Housing Team, we have developed an approach that will provide an opportunity to unite the community and co-curate a mural as part of a new London wide project called MyMural.

The MyMural project will provide seed funding to help initiate the first steps. This proposal is dependent on the local community agreeing to and forming a residents and tenants association in the area to help form the community aspect. We have provided further information below and have committed to help with the setup.

MyMural is establishes the capital’s first ‘matchmaking’ scheme putting residents and street artists in touch with each other to create new works. The scheme pilot will enable new works of art across multiple boroughs in the capital during 2018. It gives residents a direct role to improve their buildings with art and in connecting with high quality artists, and it gives established and emerging artists the chance to locate their works on fantastic walls where people are living.

Further information on the project can be found here:

The scheme will also commission a programme of free high quality works different boroughs. The brokering scheme will be democratic, ensuring that local residents are engaged in the commissioning process. We are also looking for input. The project will also explore additional opportunities to involve resident community members in other ways, too.

For further info, please view the link here and the image. With this new exciting project, we have accessed approx £1500 from the MyMural Project and our organisation has committed £1k in payment in kind work for this project on Brookfield Avenue. The further monies will be secured by an Arts for All Grant application in partnership with our local partner, the Forest Recycling project.

For this project to work, it is a requirement that a Tenants and Residents Association (TRA) is formed to allow the group to work in collaboration with the project team and artist to help co-create the work.

If you live nearby Brookfield avenue and would like to help form and be a part of the group, please register your details here. The formed group will be given a £250 startup grant and access to a discretionary fund of £700 for events and activities in the area outside of the MyMural project. Wood Street Walls has also agreed to help create an identity for the group if required.

For further detials on forming a TRA, please click the link here: https://www.walthamforest.gov.uk/content/get-involved#collapse-1-1

While this is in process, our organisation will be applying for the Arts for All grant to make the delivery of a mural a reality. This will be done in partnership with the Forest Recycling Project.

Based on the feedback submitted by the community, we are forming an opinion that the positive feedback on a mural will translate in enough appetite to form a TRA, which can in turn help nominate a champion/champions to be part of this process, and therefore we will be applying for the grant while this activity goes on in parallel.

It would be great to get everyone’s feedback on the initial proposal and the new proposed approach. You can do this by either email hello@woodstreetwalls.co.uk or completing the registration form. We'll also be doing a letter drop to inform people and guage interest of setting up a wider neighbourhood group for the area.  

For anyone interested in seeing the previously proposed mural that has been painted in Manchester for “Cities of Hope”, check out the video by Fifth Wall TV or you can view Snik's Instagram feed here.