"Coventry housing estate to be transformed with huge mural"

[dutchman]

Residents of the Tile Hill estate have been involved with contributing to the mural



A mural set to transform a Coventry housing estate will be installed this spring. The mural will be created for the ‘Tile Hill People and Places’ project on part of a 100 metre long blank wall facing a sports field at the Ponderosa in Tile Hill North.

The mural will celebrate the people and places of Tile Hill, including much-loved community leader Terry Harvey, who died in 2018. The area's links to boxing, schools and churches will also feature.

The mural has been brought to the area by Coventry City of Culture's street art collective, ‘In Paint We Trust’, which has brought a series of impressive murals to the city. Last year, twenty long-term residents were interviewed about their memories of Tile Hill for the mural.

The features that residents said they are most proud of and would like represented in the mural are: Tile Hill’s boxing tradition (Tile Hill has produced several international boxers), woods and green spaces, Tile Hill’s sense of community, schools and churches, and the life of community leader, the late Terry Harvey, who was liked and admired by many.

The mural will be created during March and April by artists from ‘In Paint We Trust’. Design and spray paint workshops will also be held in local schools.

The City of Culture project has been done with the Tile Hill Community Partnership and Tile Hill North Residents Association. Deputy Residents’ Association chair, Joy Warren said: “We’re so pleased the Ponderosa mural is finally happening. It’s been planned for years, but delayed by the pandemic and the search for funding. It wouldn’t have happened without City Culture funding.”

Michael Batchelor, an artists from ‘In Paint We Trust’, said: "It’s important that street art reflects the feelings and concerns of local people. That’s why we love to involve residents in designing and preparing our pieces. Street art is our way of bringing top quality art out of the gallery and into communities."

Residents over the age of 14 have also been offered the chance to learn how to spray paint and help paint a base coat on the wall. Sessions at the Ponderosa will take place on Saturday 19 March, Saturday 26 March. To get involved contact: ajd100@virginmedia.com