Camille Walala brightened up a boring major road in East London
The artist's trademarks and flourishes landed on London's Leyton High Road as part of her crowdfunding artwork, Walala Parade
Camille Walala and local art collective Wood Street Walls raised a total of £ 40,000 to install the piece – including a £ 25,000 donation from the Mayor of London – which spans several shops in Leyton. Not only did the Londoners contribute money to support the piece, but they were also able to vote online on their favorite design before the artwork was painted – using recycled and carbon absorbing paint.
The final piece is the classic walala with its bright colors, Memphis-style graphics, and general exuberance. It feels like an especially appropriate addition to Main Street right now, when many stores are struggling to recover from the aftermath of the lockdown and many are understandably nervous about getting back into the world.
"Art and color have an amazing power to spread positivity, especially on the street scale," says the artist. "It is wonderful to have the opportunity to influence and inspire the appearance of an entire neighborhood so deeply to be part of such a community-led initiative."
Walala's approach has been in great demand in recent years as the artist's signature supergraphic has been applied to everything from a Lego home installation to a pedestrian crossing to an inflatable castle.
Photography by Tim Crocker and Wood Street Walls, camillewalala.com; woodstreetwalls.co.uk