By Andrew Brown, Stand up For Southport
One thing I really love about Southport is the stunning street art we have in our town!
There are works that you can’t miss, which are worth visiting our town for in their own right.
They include the impressive four-storey Red Rum mural, painted as one of the highlights of Sefton Borough of Culture in 2020 on the end of a row of buildings on Scarisbrick Avenue.
You can’t miss the towering statue of ‘Captain Tom’, on one side of Charlotte House on Hoghton Street with a huge tribute to NHS staff on the other side of the building, created thanks to Mark and Lyn Cunningham of Anthony James Estate Agents.
Then there are the smaller, subtle ones that really make you smile as you stumble across them.
One with a real wow factor is Audrey Hepburn from her role in Breakfast At Tiffany’s peering over her glasses on the shutters outside David H. Myers Opticians on London Street.
Another is the iconic gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson, looking out from the shutters outside Quicksilver Music on Market Street.
World-famous street artist Ben Eine – whose art graces the White House thanks to a gift from UK Prime Minister David Cameron to US President Barack Obama – has left his mark on the shutters outside The Sandgrounder chippy on Nevill Street with a giant colourful ‘S’.
Great street art is a brilliant way of bringing dull walls or grey shutters to life.
It makes people smile; it makes people think; it gives a place its own unique character.
For a town like Southport, which has perceptions of being a ‘Victorian town’ and a ‘traditional seaside resort’, street art is a great way of showing visitors something new, something creative, something unexpected.
They leave with a different view of where they’ve visited than when they arrived.
The benefits that good street art brings to communities have been highlighted today on LinkedIn by Iain Nicholson, a Strategic Development Lead at the Institute Of Place Management, following a visit to New Brighton in Wirral.
He’s a big advocate of encouraging places to look at the increasingly strong examples around the country of stunning street art. And Southport has some great works for visitors to enjoy.
Southport had two good times for street art – the brilliant UpNorthFest Graffiti / Urban Art Festival created by Ketih Lack and Neil Morris which took place over two days in 2011, which saw creations popping up all over town, and then during the Covid pandemic, when huge murals including Red Rum and ‘Captain Tom’ appeared.
It’s been a quiet time since then for new street art, but it would be brilliant to see more appearing soon.
The next Sefton Borough Of Culture, coming in 2025, could be a good opportunity to create new art?
Another UpNorthFest or Southport Arts Festival would be warmly welcomed back?
We have some superb artwork that people can enjoy already but we need more!
Perhaps we’ll see visitors attracted to our town one day through the famous ‘Southport Street Art Trail’.
Here are some of the works you can see at the moment, please message me via Facebook or email me at: mediaandrewbrown@gmail.com if you know of any other great examples locally.
1 – Red Rum
A huge mural of legendary racehorse Red Rum by acclaimed street artist Paul Curtis was unveiled in Southport in March
A huge mural of legendary racehorse Red Rum by acclaimed street artist Paul Curtis was unveiled in Southport in March 2020, during the Covid pandemic.
The mural covers more than 270 square metres and was commissioned as part of Sefton’s Borough of Culture celebrations.
It depicts Red Rum training on Southport beach and highlights how the horse, trained by Southport’s Ginger McCain, went on to win the Aintree Grand National three times – 1973, 1974 and 1977. A feat that has never been equalled in the history of the illustrious race.
Paul created his artwork during the first Covid lockdown, toiling above the ground in his cherry picker.
Artist Paul Curtis, who painted the iconic Liverbird wings in the Baltic Triangle in Liverpool, took just over a week to complete the amazing piece of artwork located on a gable wall at the top of Scarisbrick Avenue by the Promenade.
2 – Sand lizard
The mural at Toad Hall in Ainsdale in Southport
In 2021, Paul Curtis returned to work on his FIFTH mural in Southport – and his biggest challenge so far!
When completed, his tribute to the Sefton coast’s rare sand lizards was the biggest mural in Britain outside London. He has used 330 litres of paint, 42 spray paint cans and spent 360 hours, through rain and sunshine, creating the incredible scene across the exterior of the building.
Paul Curtis was declared Liverpool City Region Artist of the Year by the LCR Culture & Creativity Awards in 2020, after painting his giant 15m four-storey high mural of Red Rum.
He also painted a mural of Red Rum on the side of the Bold Hotel on Lord Street; a floor to ceiling Red Rum mural in The Atkinson on Lord Street (now on show at Aintree Racecourse); and an Audrey Hepburn artwork at David H Myers opticians on London Street.
3 – ‘Hope’, Captain Sir Tom Moore
The mural of Captain Sir Tom Moore in Southport painted by artist Robert Newbiggin
The UK’s biggest mural of Captain Sir Tom Moore now stands proudly outside the Anthony James Estate Agents office on Hoghton Street in Southport.
Painted by local artist Robert Newbiggin, it was created by painting and then fixing together 12 individual 8ft x 4ft boards to form a new visible landmark in Southport,.
The art on the other side of the building is an NHS themed mural with the North West Air Ambulance at the top, to thank our NHS heroes who have given such great care to others during the Covid-19 pandemic.
4 – Audrey Hepburn from Breakfast At Tiffany’s
The Audrey Hepburn mural outside David H Myers Opticians on London Street in Southport
The perfect mural for leading Southport opticians David H Myers on London Street – a vision of Audrey Hepburn, from the movie Breakfast at Tiffany’s, peering over her glasses.
A great way to brighten up a set of steel shutters outside a shop, a great advert for the businesses and a must-see for anyone visiting Southport.
5 – A hidden gem on Wright Street
The floral themed mural by Fauna Graphic on Wright Street in Southport
This beautiful two-storey design on Wright Street in Southport town centre is just a minute’s walk from Southport Train Station. A good first stop if you’re travelling in from Liverpool to see Southport’s street art trail.
That work was created by Fauna graphic, a street artist, mural painter, and graphic designer from Yorkshire.
She has been recognised internationally due to her environmentally driven creative style of Flora and Fauna, Advocating the importance of the natural world and bringing beautiful, vibrant artistic creations to increasingly urban societies.
6 – Les Dodd’s Snooker Centre
Street art outside the Les Dodd snooker centre on Princes Street in Southport
Street artists were going snooker loopy when they created this fun mural outside the legendary Les Dodd’s Snooker Centre on Wright Street in Southport town centre.
A series of pool balls along the building point the way to Les’ first floor emporium full of snooker and pool tables.
7 – P&A Audio
Street art outside P&A Audio and Video on Princes Street in Southport. Photo by Andrew Brown Media
World famous artist Ben Eine whose work was presented to then US President Barack Obama by then Prime Minister David Cameron, has some of his work hanging in The White House in Washington DC.
He also contributed this work at P&A Audio on Princes Street, inspired by Alice in Wonderland.
8 – Quicksilver Music
The Hunter S Thompson street art outside Quicksilver Music on Market Street in Southport
Hunter S Thompson is the inspiration for this magnificent art outside Quicksilver Music on Market Street.
The American journalist and author, the founder of the gonzo journalism movement, was famous for Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas and Hell’s Angels among others.
9 – Red Rum at The Bold Hotel
Paul Curtis and the Red Rum mural at The Bold Hotel in Southport
Paul Curtis, who designed the huge Red Rum mural at Scarisbrick Avenue, also created this mural on the side of the Bold Hotel on Lord Street.
You can find this artwork, of Rummie racing to victory in one of his three Grand National wins, on the Seabank Road side of the building.
Don’t miss the Red Rum horse sculpture at the front of the Bold Hotel too.
10 – Sandgrounder Chippy
Street art at The Sandgrounder Chippy on Nevill Street in Southport
The Sandgrounder, on Nevill Street, is one of the oldest in Southport.
Generations of local residents and holiday makers have enjoyed their fish and chips from here.
World famous street artist Ben Eine created this S on the chip shop’s shutters.
11 – Wesley Street
Wesley Street in Southport. Photo by Andrew Brown MediaSouthport’s original street artists – Wesley Street in Southport town centre is a riot of colour with every building a different shade.
Famed as ‘the village in the town’, the colourful buildings add character to a street full of independent local businesses.
12 – OmNom Zero Waste
The OmNom shop on Wesley Street in Southport. Photo by Adrian Hughes
How beautiful does the window at OmNom Zero Waste on Wesley Street look?
Adrian Hughes sent this photo of the popular shop, with a scene that reflects its environmentally aware credentials.
OmNom Zero Waste has over 100 products available unpackaged and stored in its refill dispensers with customers encouraged to bring their own clean, dry and empty containers from home and use the dispensers to refill as much or as little as they need.
13 – RSPCA shop Southport
The RSPCA charity shop on Eastbank Street in Southport. Photo by Dana Howard
This picture was submitted by Dana Howard, who said: “The RSPCA shutters on Eastbank Street are fabulous.”
The charity shop has two shutters, both adorned with animal themed street art.
One shutter shows a boxer dog surrounded by flowers, while the second shows a bird surrounded by flowers.
Do you have a story for Stand Up For Southport? Please message Andrew Brown via Facebook here or email me at: mediaandrewbrown@gmail.com
