“Hull becomes a city of colour with the addition of vibrant murals commemorating its communities”.
The streets of Hull are being given a splash of paint and a new lease of life by the murals that are being painted across the city in an ongoing rejuvenation project aimed at using Hull’s artists and their creativity to give the city a facelift and give its communities something to shout about.
Organisations such as Absolutely Cultured, The Shorelines Project and artist Lydia Caprani have taken to the streets in Hull with paint in hand to help give the city a facelift and bring the creative arts industries into the spotlight.
“Peel street park” mural
The team at Absolutely Cultured partnered with local artists Lydia Caprani and Sergei Komkov as well as the city council’s neighbourhood team in order to give the park a complete facelift. This included new play equipment with unique artwork painted on it and the finishing touch, a mural by Lydia Caprani (pictured above). The mural was a key part of this project because of its inspiration coming from the feedback of the surrounding communities.
“Queen of colours” mural
The placement of this mural combined with its impressive size and vibrant colours has made this mural a must see for anyone living in Hull or even passing through. Painted by renowned artist Dan Kitchener, who goes by the name “DANK”, it has been a huge hit with locals, tourists and other street artists alike as part of the ongoing regeneration project in the city. The mural is so large, it can be seen from the A63 if you’re driving through, so be on the lookout.
“Peace” mural
Dan Kitchener returned to Hull in April 2021 with his second impressive mural in the city. The professional mural/street artist’s latest piece can be found on the side of the Danish Buildings on High Street in Hull’s Old Town. The latest mural features a ‘simple delicate’ geisha emerging from the darkness, which Dank compares to the public coming out of lockdown.
“Hessle road fisherman’s” mural
The project has also seen a huge part of Hull’s history and identity immortalised in mural form. A 17-metre tall fisherman was painted on the side of the Half Way pub on Hesse Road by several artists from the UK, including Lydia Caprani, to commemorate the lives of the fisherman that never made it back to dry land. This was painted across an impressive two week period as part of the 2017 Hull City of Culture plan dubbed “roots and routes”.
Bankside Gallery
“Impressive wall mural painted by Mul on bankside”.
Bankside gallery deserved a special in this quick guide to the outdoor art in the city of Hull as they have completely transformed huge parts of the town centre and other parts across the city with their legal permission walls initiative in which street artists from the locals area and elsewhere can use the walls given to Bankside gallery by the council to express their creativity and create amazing artworks that are constantly changing so no two walls are ever the same.
“The girl” mural
The mural named “the girl” is amazing and striking in equal measure. Painted by The Shorelines Project on the side of the Hull College building, the mural is meant to make you feel uncomfortable and spark conversations. Upon closer inspection you can see that the girl is sitting underwater. This piece is teasing at the possibility of what could be lost due to flooding in the surrounding areas and is meant to make you think about could happen if nothing is done about it.
The ongoing project has really helped the city find a true sense of identity with showcasing famous people and famous city heritage that people from outside Hull may not have known about. It’s also evident that its really helped tourism in the city by increasing footfall in less travelled areas and created a so called “boom” in street art with the introduction of Bankside Gallery.
The project has also seen many artists in Hull and its surrounding areas come together to help the city and the project is likely to pick up pace again now that lockdown is being eased. So be on the lookout around the city for any new murals.
