We visited Bankside Gallery which is a project to stop antisocial behavior on this abandoned housing estate; the fairly large housing estate is currently in the process of been knocked down.
An outdoor gallery of street art that’s not only approved by the local authority but also celebrated by residents throughout the city, Bankside Gallery began in February 2018, just after Banksy had painted his awesome piece on Scott Street Bridge. With people from near and far visiting the industrial area to view this cultural asset, a collective of local street artists decided that a lot more could be done.
Bankside and Wincolmlee is an area few people have ventured to, except maybe to use it as a rat run to circumvent the city’s clogged arterial roads. The city’s former industrial heart used to hum with activity along its working river and, while the industry still has a small foothold along these streets, much of the human activity these days focuses on the true hidden gem ‘proper’ pubs selling real ale, such as The Whalebone.
That all changed when a certain Banksy left his mark on the old Scott Street bridge and people from across the city flocked to see the world-famous artist’s latest work. Cue an impromptu group calling themselves Bankside Gallery, who saw the potential in handing over the area’s blank walls to artists to transform them into a sprawling, living artwork that would ensure this was no flash-in-the-pan incident. Now the graffiti is appearing on a weekly basis, thanks to their efforts to facilitate a more active scene.
