A new glow-in-the-dark mural encouraging visitors leaving Brighton Station to venture into the North Laine is nearing completion.
Artist SinnaOne, aka Daryl Bennett, has been working with a group of young people on the mural at the top of Trafalgar Street, which has been inspired by and local fauna and flora.
It is part of Grow Wild, a partnership between Southern and the Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew, and was prompted by a bid from the Brighton Toy Museum, which has been revamping its entrance opposite the mural.
SinnaOne worked with a group of young people aged 18-26 through several workshops teaching key spray paint and mural techniques. For some of them, like 19-year-old Reggie Rai Lacey, it is their first project in public.
Tom Easdown, Southern’s Head of Stations, said: “Arriving into Brighton by train is an occasion in and of itself, from the sweeping views of colourful houses out of the window to the stunning blue iron train shed you’re under when you first step foot in the city.
“The sea is in sight from the moment you leave the station, around a ten minute walk down Queen’s Road, but tucked away underneath the station is a gateway to the independent, creative shopping district Brighton is famed for.
“Our partnership with Kew is a great way to celebrate communities like those in the vibrant North Laine, and this mural does just that – adding a splash of colour which will not only look fabulous but hopefully encourage people to take the scenic route to the sea.”
Kew’s Grow Wild on the Railway scheme received £27,250 from Southern to support a range of creative projects led by young people at stations across the Southern network, including at nearby Haywards Heath, Hove and London Road stations where artists Esther Lower and Mia Jones have spruced up a disused hut on the platform with colourful floral spray paint, forming part of a newly created pocket park at the station.
Brighton Toy and Model Museum Manager Jan Etches said: “This project is about inspiring local pride and creativity while continuing to brighten the area.
“The new mural complements the wider regeneration of the museum frontage and underpass beautifully. It will make the station approach a place that feels alive, positive and welcoming.”
Peter Wingate-Saul, Trustee of the North Laine Community association added: “As we celebrate fifty years since our neighbourhood was saved from wholesale demolition to make way for a flyover, it is cheering to see this colourful mural taking shape at the portal to the North Laine, at the top of what has historically been a rather gloomy underpass, now much-improved by the Toy Museum’s new facade and lighting.”
The mural is due to be completed on Monday, February 23 after three weeks of painting by Daryl Bennett and his team of young artists Amber Lucia, Ellie McNair, Lucy Zini, Myla Murray and Reggie Rae Lacey.
