National Lottery Funding is supporting a new mural inspired by blockbuster MARVEL film, Black Panther. Working to the theme, Heroes & Power, established artist EVEWRIGHT will lead young people in creating a new mural through online workshops starting on the 23rd of June and the mural will be painted in July in Ipswich, Suffolk.
Art Eat will be producing the community mural for the Ipswich Waterfront area. It will be created with young people in collaboration with 15 local youth and community organisations including Swerve Sunday Ipswich, 4YP Suffolk Young People's Health Project, Catch 22, Future Female Society, Ipswich Community Media, South Street Kids, Outreach Youth, Staying Close, Out Loud Music, Karibu, Rock Paper Scissors as well as Suffolk Libraries and Ipswich & Colchester Museum Service.
EVEWRIGHT will deliver four online workshop sessions in June from his studio in Essex via video link where ideas for the new mural will be developed together with young people in Ipswich.
Heroes & Power is inspired by MARVEL's Black Panther film and in association with The Power of Stories exhibition which could take place at Christchurch Mansion in 2021. The mural will be painted by the artist, workshop participants, and members of the wider community in July. Social distancing measures will be in place, if still required at that time.
EVEWRIGHT said: “The Black Panther film is loved by many young people, and it came from the original Black Panther movement, which was about black people helping and educating themselves and their children. So, in the making of the mural project, I’m guiding young people across all ethnicities to explore ‘power’; who holds the power, self-empowerment, the idea of ‘hero’ and what today’s heroes look like.
“Emory Douglas created a lot of the Black Panther posters, and I loved his posters when I was a kid. I’m now a graphic artist by training, so the young people will look at graphics and art of that time, and come up with a mural that represents not only the message of what was going on then, but also how we can dovetail messages relevant to present times, including that of current events, triggered by the killing of George Floyd.
“The mural will be youth-led messaging – and I want young people to get involved in painting that message on the wall.”
Art Eat Events CIC delivers events that celebrate community, encouraging cohesion and connection through art.
To take part in the mural project please visit www.arteatfestival.com/youthmural
