Students are supporting the award-winning Bring the Paint international street art festival which launches next week around the city.
Some 50 artists from all over the world will be in Leicester transforming buildings with giant murals and creating eye-catching 3D artwork on the streets. The festival, which starts on Saturday and runs until 26 May, is set to attract 10,000 visitors.
This year, students from the Arts and Festivals Management course have been working in artist liaison and event support, while students from #DMUlocal will be among the festival’s army of volunteers. The Gallery DMU is also running a special exhibition called Leicester Graffiti Retrospective from tomorrow (18 May).
In addition to being able to watch the painstakingly-detailed street art taking shape during the week, visitors will also be able to enjoy an art fair, exhibitions, live music, workshops, street food and a range of satellite events.
Ahead of the festival, BID Leicester and Bring the Paint teamed up to give a graffiti makeover to empty shops in the city. St Martins Square, Market Place, Belvoir Street and Market Street were transformed thanks to artists Smug, Ruelo, Sam Grubb, Alex Rubes, Mono, Gent, Philth and 45RPM.
Artistic Director of Bring The Paint, Izzy Hoskins, said: “We are incredibly excited to stage Bring The Paint international street art festival for the second time in Leicester.
"Our world-class line-up of artists speak for themselves and we are proud to be working with such an incredible cohort of writers. The festival is set to be one of the biggest street art events in the UK this year.”
Bring the Paint is run by Graffwerk in Frog Island, Leicester and sponsored by Arts Council England, BID Leicester, Leicester City Council, DMU, Montana Cans, LCFC and Highcross Leicester.
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Mark Charlton, Associate Director of Public Engagement at DMU, said the university was delighted to be able to support Bring the Paint.
He said: “It’s a fantastic showcase for art and brings a great buzz to the city. It’s given our students the opportunity to apply their knowledge to a fun event and our student volunteers get the chance to promote Leicester.”
• Download the LoyalFree app for free on their smartphone to follow a digital trail of all the Bring the Paint locations.
Posted on Friday 17 May 2019