DURHAM LEGAL WALLS PROJECT
KINDLY SUPPORTED BY:
What are ‘legal walls’?
Often spaces that have initially attracted graffiti, these walls are offered to the artists as areas they can paint, safely and freely. With 266 legal walls recorded in the UK, these areas offer opportunities for artists to practise, display their work and collaborate.
By bringing these walls into community use we find the quality of the artwork improves, as well as peoples perceptions of the area. Legal walls manage themselves, the work is constantly changing and any damage or unsightly work is quickly covered by an artist looking for a safe space to paint. We also find that once the areas are clearly defined, we see less unsightly graffiti in the immediate area, as artists stick within the parameters to ensure the projects success.
The pictures here show a before and after of our project at Hetton Lyons.
PROJECT Q&A
What will the project be?
CYAN_CIC in collaboration with Durham Spray Paints, will be supporting the transition of a number of these spaces into their use as legal walls. We will be collaborating with artists to do some initial repair and mural work, then helping with the curation of these spaces going forward. If you’re interested in creating some work on your local legal wall, and want to be part of the programme, get in touch at artist@cyancic.uk We want to work with local artists and pass the stewardship of these spaces over to them, by giving them the support and skills they need.
Why do we need a project like this?
These walls are often heavily defaced, by artists who are worried about the legality and longevity, the work therefore is often not done to a high standard. These spaces can look neglected and go on to attract anti-social behaviour. Our legal wall pilot in Hetton Lyons Country Park, saw a huge improvement to the area. We saw increased footfall in a once rarely used area. Local artists made connections with the people who walk in the area, and the artwork received excellent feedback. We are in urgent need of community spaces like these. Our project encourages local people to take ownership of their local area, empowering them to make it a better place.
Why should CYAN_CIC organise this?
We want to create opportunities and connect with people who use informal art spaces like these. Our organisation has lots of great opportunities for local artists and we want to expand our offer to make sure we’re serving as many artists in Durham as we can. We also have an excellent reputation and connections with local artists, who we call on to collaborate on these projects. There is no organisation better placed to work across Durham and deliver community focused art programmes.
How is the project funded?
Montana Cans are providing us with spray paint to support the project via Global Art Supplies. We hope to receive further funding to allow us to continue the project and expand across more sites. If you’re interested in supporting the project, further funding would allow us to run workshops, offer materials and tuition and help bring these spaces into further community use.
What stage is the project at?
Please see our list of sites below, working with Durham County Council, Spennymoor Town Council and Friends of Hetton Lyons County Park. We are currently rolling out the project to skate parks across Durham.
If you’re an artist or local who’s interested in taking part, get in touch for more details. We will be hosting events at skateparks and walls across the county before transitioning these spaces into legal walls. We’re not just painting the parks, we’re helping make connections between the artist, facility users and wider community to help them understand how a legal art space can provide a lasting solution.
These are the places we have built for our children to play. Before and after photos of Meadowfield Skate Park.
Before and after at St Helen Skate Park
LEGAL WALL LOCATIONS
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This area is now a legal wall and ready to paint. Please paint safely and be considerate of those using the footpath and of other artists
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This skatepark is now a legal wall area and ready to paint. Please paint safely and be considerate of those using the skatepark and of other artists
Location: Meadowfield, DH7 8RG
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This skatepark is now a legal wall area and ready to paint. Please paint safely and be considerate of those using the skatepark and of other artists
Location: DL14 9BW
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We will soon be hosting an event at this location before transitioning the space into legal walls.
If you’re an artist or local who is interested in taking part, get in touch for more details.
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We will soon be hosting an event at this location before transitioning the space into legal walls.
If you’re an artist or local who is interested in taking part, get in touch for more details.
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We will soon be hosting an event at this location before transitioning the space into legal walls.
If you’re an artist or local who is interested in taking part, get in touch for more details.
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We will soon be hosting an event at this location before transitioning the space into legal walls.
If you’re an artist or local who is interested in taking part, get in touch for more details.
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We will soon be hosting an event at this location before transitioning the space into legal walls.
If you’re an artist or local who is interested in taking part, get in touch for more details.
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We will soon be hosting an event at this location before transitioning the space into legal walls.
If you’re an artist or local who is interested in taking part, get in touch for more details.
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We will soon be hosting an event at this location before transitioning the space into legal walls.
If you’re an artist or local who is interested in taking part, get in touch for more details.
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We will soon be hosting an event at this location before transitioning the space into legal walls.
If you’re an artist or local who is interested in taking part, get in touch for more details.
HOW YOU CAN HELP
If you’re interested in participating, have a wall that you’d like to add to the project, or want to ask us anything: get in touch at artist@cyancic.uk
If you feel able to donate below, your support will help establish a hugely important community asset for Durham’s art scene.