New Digitisation Project by Art Education Charity Art UK
A new project to raise awareness of murals and street art from across the UK has today been announced by Art UK. Five thousand murals will be digitally recorded as part of the art education charity’s latest major project to add works to its free-to-use database of art in the national collection.
Highlighting the place of street art in our communities, the programme will showcase the diverse artists involved in making murals. It will also ensure that vital records are created for outdoor artworks at risk of damage or destruction. The three-year project is being made possible thanks to a £250,000 grant from The National Lottery Heritage Fund. Other funders supporting the project include the Pilgrim Trust and Historic England.
Katey Goodwin, Deputy Chief Executive and Director of Community Engagement at Art UK says: ‘We are thrilled to announce our vital new project to record and photograph the nation’s diverse and exciting murals. From shopping centres and railway stations to churches and museums, we will celebrate the thousands of painted and sculptural murals in our communities. Many of these are at risk of decay or demolition, so the work of our staff and volunteers will ensure that a permanent record is created.’
Robyn Llewellyn, Director of England – Midlands & East at The National Lottery Heritage Fund, says: ‘We’re thrilled to be able to support Art UK with this fantastic project. Murals tell the stories of our communities and help bring our heritage to life in unique art forms. Thanks to money raised by National Lottery players, these will be digitally protected for generations to come and allow people to learn more about the amazing heritage on their doorstep.’
Art UK’s dedicated network of volunteer researchers and photographers will record approximately 5,000 artworks executed directly onto a wall, the majority of which will be painted two-dimensional murals. Sculptural three-dimensional works made of concrete, brick, wood, tile and other materials will also be included. Street art is now often sanctioned or commissioned and created to connect with a wide audience by putting across a message or providing something beautiful for everyone to enjoy. The project will not record unsanctioned graffiti, an artform used as branding and a way of marking territory.
A series of community and school activities will support the programme, including workshops with artists, audio descriptions for blind and partially sighted people, and learning resources for teachers. We will be partnering with CultureStreet and VocalEyes on these activities.
Scott Irving, a street artist who works under the name Brave Arts, says: ‘As an artist, working in ‘shared space’ can be problematic: your paintings are deemed disposable. This kind of artwork isn’t removed and rehung elsewhere when its replaced – it’s painted over, forgotten, irrelevant almost! Digitising street art – recording it and putting it online – is essential to capture fleeting moments in a culture that renews itself so quickly.’
The project – which is being made possible through grants from The National Lottery Heritage Fund, the Pilgrim Trust, Historic England, the Colwinston Trust and The Walker Trust – marks the third major digitisation initiative carried out by Art UK. In 2022, the charity completed a five-year project to record 50,000 sculptures across the UK, having previously catalogued all the UK’s publicly owned oil paintings.
Andrew Ellis, Chief Executive of Art UK, says: ‘Murals are an accessible and popular art form which bring colour and life to our streets and civic buildings. They are also a barometer of the social conscience, immediately celebrating or mourning events, and reflecting the self-expression of communities. Art UK is committed to democratising access to public art and the wider national collection of art, and we will take an important step forward by bringing these artworks onto our platform. We are hugely grateful to the funders who have made this exciting project possible.’