The new mural A Dog In Hand… [D*Face Studio]

THE first of more than 100 murals has been completed in Camden as a part of a month-long festival spanning 15 boroughs in London.

The London Mural festival which is running throughout September is organised by Global Street Art.

The festival aims to bring together thousands of artists and communities.

The new Camden mural called ‘A Dog in Hand…’ and created by artist D*Face has appeared on Crowndale Road on the Theatro Technis building and is one of nine other murals to come in Camden over this month.

Artist D*Face said: “The origins of my work stem from working in the public domain, from the humble sticker, to a full blown mural, it’s really at the core of what I love. It’s essential that the opportunity to see and enjoy art of any kind remains open to everyone, regardless of financial or even educational background.

“That is one of the defining traits of what tends to be referred to as ‘street art’ or ‘urban art’, it’s painted in the public domain to free it from the constraints of a white-walled gallery space.

“There’s also an unexpected nature to a mural that gives it an edge of excitement and intrigue over a canvas on a wall. Take this wall as an example, it’s not somewhere you’d expect to find art, as you approach it, from 200m down the road it’s obscured by trees and buildings and springs out at you quite abruptly.

“With this wall specifically, there was a fair bit of back-and-forth with the landlord to ensure that they were happy with the artwork and that it felt in keeping with the community. I’d painted this particular wall previously so there was already some familiarity with my work, it was nice to be invited back to paint something new, it’s unusual for that to happen.”

[D*Face Studio]

D*Face told the New Journal of his love for the venue KOKO, which is fittingly just a couple of minutes away from the location of the new mural.

D*Face said: “I’ve lived and worked in London my whole life so it’s great to be painting at home for once. Camden particularly played a strong part in my teenage years, I used to come up here to buy clothes, hang out, watch bands, try and be cool! It’s obviously synonymous with music and so I’d regularly come here to watch bands. I saw Kurt Vile at KOKO last year, so that venue is iconic and significant to me.”

Lee Bofkin, CEO of Global Street Art said: “London Mural Festival champions cultural exchange by fostering connections and inspiration in London’s cultural landscape, uniting art and artists within local neighbourhoods to create lasting public works of art which foster pride and connection within communities.”

Global Street Art have created an interactive map of all the mural locations and artists where you can find the locations of the murals in the Camden borough.