A Suffolk-based artist is set to work with a coastal community as part of a scheme that will see a new mural created.
Kirkley Pocket Parks Group has appointed the Colombian illustrator and visual artist Catalina Carvajal to work with the community to create a new mural for Kirkley in south Lowestoft.
The project, titled What Kirkley Means to Me, will see the artist engage with the community to inspire her design for a 22-metre mural at the Cleveland Road Pocket Park - and you can get involved too.
The artist will be working with a school and a residential home as well as hosting two community art workshops this Saturday, February 4 at the Kirkley Centre at 10am and 1.30pm.
These workshops are open to all Kirkley residents and places can be booked via Eventbrite by searching Cleveland Road.
As well as the workshops, the Pocket Parks Group - which is a group of Kirkley residents that was established in spring 2022 and is invested in improving the area they live - will be setting up a short online survey for Kirkley residents to complete.
Of the commission, and her approach, Catalina said: "I'm thrilled to have been selected to work with the Kirkley community and help find what Kirkley means to them.
"Getting to know Kirkley better and working so close to the local community is exciting.
"I love listening to the everyday stories that make places and people who they are.
"Public art revitalises the spaces and gets people closer to different creative experiences."
The workshops are due to take place in the coming weeks and the mural will be painted on site in late March.
The site will then be ready for planting.
Wendy Dalton, chairman of the Kirkley Pocket Parks Group, said: "The workshops are an important part of this process, helping to ensure that residents feel an ownership towards the mural and are proud of what has been achieved.
"I'm looking forward to seeing how the ideas from the workshops are then woven into the final mural."
The project is being delivered in partnership with Kirkley People's Forum and the Lowestoft Heritage Action Zones.
It is hoped that this mural alongside works by ATM and Banksy will help to grow public art across the town.
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