Wild Walls in Ipswich (1)

This is Part (1) of the ‘Wild Walls Festival‘ which was a collaboration between ‘Art Eat Events CIC‘ and The Subversiv Collective. They have been supported by the Arts Council of England, Ipswich Borough Council and Ipswich Central, also by SPILL, The Hold and University of Suffolk. Some of the images have been on display for some time but there are many new ones.

Digby by John D Edwards (1) This was part of a 2011 project entitled the Never Ending Mural, the artwork is based on drawings by young people in the county and has been curated by Ipswich Art School.  The curator John Edwards said: "I'm excited that the people of Ipswich, the council and businesses have this creativity."

Mr Edwards, an artist himself, added that 20 young people have begun painting the mural and said more are welcome.  "It's the start of a huge community arts project," he said. "It's really removing boundaries and making it possible for people to get involved with things instantly rather than just dreaming about it." 

Unfortunately over the years, Digby has faded a bit!

The above four murals are: Shark, Urban Jungle, Peacock, Toucan all by Leroy Murals (Colchester-based artist Adrian Leroy) (2a, b,c, d)

The artist has a specific passion for nature, with a lot of his artwork featuring wildlife and plants. He has been painting for more than 20 years, typically using bright and cheerful colours.

The Phone Box on Stoke Bridge - Keith Hopewell (3)

The Ben Raemers tribute artwork, painted at Ipswich skate park by Jon Horner (4)

Friends of Ben Raemers, 28, who was born in Essex, but lived in Ipswich for many years, unveiled a mural in his memory and are hoping to start an open conversation about men's mental health. Ben died in May (2019) and since his death tributes have been flooding in from across the skateboarding world ahead of his funeral on Monday, June 3. Described by friends as fearless, international eyes were set on Ben from as young as 14 when he pulled of a 540-spin in front of a crowd of more than 1,000.

Lee Blackwell, from Ipswich, discovered Ben's talent with his friends Mark Munson and Carl Wilson, at a small skate park in Essex when he was just nine years old. They watched him go on to become "one of the best skateboarders in the world."

Unfortunately, this mural has also faded since then.

Woskerski – Ashton Legal

"The goal of my work is to make people smile" says Woskerski. “But also to make them stop and try to interpret the art in their own way”.  For the piece in Ipswich he draws attention to the fact that some of the ladybird’s spots are missing. Around the mural local community members add spots to the shell. “This is empowering. It also portrays the joy that people feel when doing something artistic. I hope the people of Ipswich enjoy and have fun with the mural.”  (5)

Hedgehog from Swan & Hedgehog Pub 

Music World shop painted by Catalina Carvajal  (6 & 7)

Frankie Rose - Buttermarket steps, Wild Walls and Art Eat  (8)

Frankie Rose is a mural artist and illustrator known for her vibrant and joyful work. Specializing in bright, uplifting designs, she transforms spaces with her colourful creations, bringing positivity and energy to every project.

MasVandal Stencil artist and street artist from Essex - Revolution Front doors, Wild Walls & Art Eat (9)

 

Safety - Joel Millerchip & Suffolk One Sixth Form College. Part of Wolsey 550   (10) 

To quote his site: "I’m Joel Millerchip, an artist, ADHD thinker, illustrator and tattooist-in-the-making. Born in Birmingham, blossoming in Suffolk.
My distinctive illustrative style is perfect for bold, impactful designs that work perfectly in print, on a wall, on a screen or all over your left leg.
I also run illustration workshops for all ages looking to make their creativity explode."

Chloe Chilvers - Tower Street  (11)

Chloe Marie is a 21-year-old creative portrait artist from Ipswich, Suffolk. After her studio ceiling caved in last year, she made it her mission to bring her art to the public. With growing popularity on TikTok, Chloe shares her art knowledge in fun educational art videos. Like the Leaning Tower of Pisa, Chloe believes our imperfections make us unique. Her art celebrates the beautiful diversity of being human and life’s unpredictable journey.

KB Design – Great Colman Street

Two street artists Kirsty and Brittany work together as KB Design. They have created an image with multiple layers and inspirations. Brought together through workshops with local young people. It shows the skyline, Digby the Octopus, the ‘I’ of Ipswich and the Suffolk flower, the Oxlip. All are visuals that represent the town. The butterfly, eyes and the hands meanwhile add a bit of humanity to the piece. Themselves all representing Ipswich’s young people.   (12)

Viking Aquatics - Lily Hammond, Wild Walls and Art Eat  (13)

Lily hand-painted a wild scene of tropical flowers and animals onto the side wall of Viking Aquatics – a bold and colourful addition to the street art trail in Central Ipswich.
“I’m most joyful when I’m painting. Murals are my favourite job by far and it was a pleasure to have complete creative freedom on this process”.

Harvest 

A rare mural in Ipswich on the former Co-Operative department store has been Grade II listed, following support from C20 Society.  The colourful mosaic tile mural was designed by Hungarian émigré artists Gyula Bajó and Endre Hevezi between 1963-64, it is one of only four such Co-op murals in the UK.   (14)

ATM - Stag Beetle at The Hold

ATM, whose work usually features wildlife, was invited to create the mural by Suffolk Archives. The subject of the mural was chosen by the results of a public online survey and the unmistakable stag beetle topped the poll.

Stag beetles are facing serious decline across Europe, but Ipswich is a stronghold for our largest and most conspicuous terrestrial beetle.

ATM painted the mural over the course of a week using brushes and acrylics rather than traditional urban spray cans. (15a)

Nathan Murdoch`s work inspired by the historical records of the Suffolk Archives.

Peterborough based artist, Nathan ‘NYCES’ Murdoch has been honing his skill with a spray can for over 25 years. His prolific portfolio of work has seen numerous pieces go viral with celebrities such as Ice T and The Prodigy publicly commenting on his work.

Having started out as a graffiti artist, Nathan has, over the years, widened his repertoire to include street art through his highly successful company Street Arts Hire. (15b)

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