A passage that runs underneath the railway next to Hackney Wick station that’s currently covered in graffiti is to be given over to an artist to be professionally decorated with a mural.
(c) Hackney Council
To select an artist, Network Rail, in partnership with Hackney Council and the London Legacy Development Corporation is running an open competition to choose a design. They say that the mural design must be representative of the Hackney Wick community and help to make the space feel safe and pleasant for passengers and pedestrians.
The winning design will be painted onto the underpass wall to be visible to passing pedestrians and users of the station.
The competition is open to all artists, but Network Rail says that it particularly encourages those from the local community and artists working with youth-led community organisations. It will be a fantastic opportunity to increase the visibility of your work.
Hackney Wick Station underwent a transformation in 2017 as part of a £25 million scheme, and the project saw the creation of a new subway running north to south beneath the existing railway line replacing the existing footbridge and opening of new pedestrian and cycle links from Wallis Road through to White Post Lane.
This created a new concrete-lined thoroughfare between Hackney Wick and Fish Island, which they now want to decorate.
The deadline for applications is Tuesday 11th April 2023 – and application details are here.
How are they going to stop this getting graffitied over? It’s Hackney Wick.
Save the money and just leave it as graffitti space but that will, of course, be beyond the brain of the council who must spend money.
Almost as if it was in direct response, the day I read this article, graffiti artists were painting over the previous design and doing a new one.
There is no payment to artists and youth groups for this project. It is utterly outrageous, exploitative of the desire to be creative and to contribute and would be tantamount to slave labour. How are we supposed to live, on not-very-fresh air?