Mural at bottom of Spurling Road

[funkymadam]

Hi all,

Would anyone happen to have any photos of the mural which was on the wall at the bottom of Spurling Road which was painted in the 1980s?

I was born and raised in Spurling Road and the mural sparked my curiosity. I discovered upon visiting East Dulwich a few years back that someone had painted over it!

Thanks

[Otta]

I'd love to see a photo too, as I loved that wall as a kid. Have tried internet searches with no joy.

[Otta]

The main detail I remember was a space trooper type fella with futuristic armour and a laser rifle.

[Remington Steele]

Been meaning to put this up for you for ages...

Apologies for my terrible tardiness...

http://i629.photobucket.com/albums/uu20/RemiRough/Controlin1985LR.jpg

[Sue]

Is that the same mural?

My memory of it is completely different!

[Vik]

That's the one I remember from the early 90's.

Thanks for the pic.

[Sue]

My memory is clearly crap then, and now I can see why it was painted over :))

[funkymadam]

THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!

Isn't how i remembered it either! ;-)

[Sue]

funkymadam Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!

>

> Isn't how i remembered it either! ;-)

xxxxxxx

Thank God for that, I thought I was going mad.

I think there was a mural there before that one, which was lovely and much more detailed.

Then that was painted over - which was a terrible thing to do in my opinion - and I think the one pictured above, if indeed it is in the same location - was then painted over the paint, if you see what I mean.

The one above seems to me to be more graffiti than a mural!

[Chillaxed]

And yet 10 times better than the 'tags' that scrotes do these days. I'd be happy to see something like the above there now, if not a mural. Maybe the kids that painted the catering business's window board could have a crack.

[funkymadam]

Chillaxed Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> And yet 10 times better than the 'tags' that

> scrotes do these days. I'd be happy to see

> something like the above there now, if not a

> mural. Maybe the kids that painted the catering

> business's window board could have a crack.

Yes! or something similar as in the playground at Heber Road Primary (as was in the late 80s, lots of animals as i recall.

[Remington Steele]

This one was painted in 1985 but the photo was taken in 2001, so it had been a tad battered by the elements...

I remember walking down from school to see it the day after it was painted and thinking it was amazing!

The chrome effect on the letter at the bottom was near perfect.

All in it was up there for almost a quarter of a century and thats not a bad run. If there was a mural on there before this one I never saw it and it was pre 1985 thats for sure.

And I don't think we can atsrt deciding whats graffiti and what's a mural anymore, those lines got blurred about a decade ago.

[macrobana]

> If there was a mural on there before this one I never saw it and it was pre 1985 thats for sure.

1970s when the property was squatted.

[DavidPeckham]

It's still a lot better than those stick chaps off Lordship lane!

[Mabel2001]

Wow, that's awesome street art. What a shame it was painted over.

[healey]

Seriously??

The "stik" figures are a lovely bit of graphic design. The mural above was downright ugly. It wasn't even finished if that photo is anything to go by.

DavidPeckham Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> It's still a lot better than those stick chaps off

> Lordship lane!

[Remington Steele]

Like I said, it had been there for almost a quarter of century... Lets hope you look that good after the same amount of time.

[IngridB]

There are plans to paint that wall. There is a street art festival happening during the Dulwich Festival in May when lots of walls around Dulwich will be painted by well known street artists. Its very likely that Conor Harrington will be painting Spurling Road. https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=conor+harrington&hl=en&rlz=1C1SKPL_enGB416GB416&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=2K5EUdO5L4z74QSgoYHYDg&ved=0CEUQsAQ&biw=1680&bih=935 He is fantastically skilled and very sought after. He will be basing his mural on a painting from Dulwich Picture Gallery, like Stik did last year.

[Otta]

The photo is pretty much how I remember it from when I was a kid. I can't remember it not being there, but I wold have been 7 when it was done if it was 1985. Thanks for putting the photo up, it's cool!

And yeah, way better than the stick men, although they're okay.

[Chillaxed]

IngridB, that's great news. Harrington's stuff looks cool.

[cyclenut]

Guilty, at the tender age of 17, my ?Crew? and I took it upon ourselves to bring a bit of colour to a drab wall. The area was very different back then. Lordship lane was a dying high street following the opening of Sainsbury?s. EDT was grubby, I don?t believe the comedy nights had started yet.

We had ambitious plans, and sought permission from the residents of the building. Once we had the go ahead we set about our work. 2 days later (well 6 hours, we were young and didn?t rise before midday!), you?ve seen the result. The entire piece was created using aerosol paint, no stencils, paintbrushes or other tools. The idea was to show off our skills and in doing so get a name for ourselves. Similar art had been commissioned by the Royal Opera house in Covent Garden, and was produced by a rival Crew (TCA, The Chrome Angels). We thought we were at least as good as them, and wanted to show it. Henry Chalfont (Subway Art and later Spray Can Art), thought so, and features several pieces of our work in his books.

As pointed out, the work was unfinished. Some residents, a young couple, returned from holiday, complained, and demanded we stop. We did, and it remained in the unfinished state for 25 years fading, before being roughly painted over (it remained longer than the residents!). I stopped "graffing" to pursue a career in IT a few of years after this was completed , my brother works in film, 2 other crew members in art, design and illustration.

Great times, the height of Hip-Hop, an entire movement dedicated to dance, graffiti and music, happy days?

[Sue]

But Sainsburys opened some time after 1991 didn't it?

If the mural was painted after that, it can't have been there 25 years before it was then painted over?

Because it was painted over years ago?

I'm still confused because I remember a totally different mural which more or less covered the whole side of that house! Wondering if I'm mixing it up with another mural somewhere else!

[aprovocateur]

cyclenut Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

Guilty, at the tender age of 17, my ?Crew? and I took it upon ourselves to bring a bit of colour to a drab wall. The area was very different back then. Lordship lane was a dying high street following the opening of Sainsbury?s. EDT was grubby, I don?t believe the comedy nights had started yet.

We had ambitious plans, and sought permission from the residents of the building. Once we had the go ahead we set about our work. 2 days later (well 6 hours, we were young and didn?t rise before midday!), you?ve seen the result. The entire piece was created using aerosol paint, no stencils, paintbrushes or other tools. The idea was to show off our skills and in doing so get a name for ourselves. Similar art had been commissioned by the Royal Opera house in Covent Garden, and was produced by a rival Crew (TCA, The Chrome Angels). We thought we were at least as good as them, and wanted to show it. Henry Chalfont (Subway Art and later Spray Can Art), thought so, and features several pieces of our work in his books.

As pointed out, the work was unfinished. Some residents, a young couple, returned from holiday, complained, and demanded we stop. We did, and it remained in the unfinished state for 25 years fading, before being roughly painted over (it remained longer than the residents!). I stopped "graffing" to pursue a career in IT a few of years after this was completed, my brother works in film, 2 other crew members in art, design and illustration.

Great times, the height of Hip-Hop, an entire movement dedicated to dance, graffiti and music, happy days?

-------------------------------------------------------

cyclenut... presuming you went under the moniker Flyboy aka Harm?

I moved to East Dulwich in 2000 but don't remember seeing it before it was painted over! But I know people that remember it well and consider it a historic writers wall because of your piece.

Have just been tawling through the interweb and found some more photos of it, all saying it was approx. 1985.

http://farm5.staticflickr.com/4065/4711406232_175a9406b0_b.jpg

controlling the city p1 by HytestA, on Flickr

http://farm5.staticflickr.com/4031/4710764323_a42f13522a_b.jpg

controlling the city by HytestA, on Flickr

http://farm2.staticflickr.com/1289/4711406152_060786e079_b.jpg

controlling the city p2 by HytestA, on Flickr

[funkymadam]

Brilliant!

And if my memory serves me well the elderly lady in the middle photograph was called Betty.

On another note, myself and a few chums were responsible for painting the lamp post at the top of Spurling Road a lovely Magnolia around 1990, we were only stopped by a ranting little man! My mother was non too pleased as i got paint all over my school dress, and when i came back to ED around 2002 it was still there!

Not as good as the sterling effort made by fellow East Dulwich Forum posters....

[caz6868]

wow ...wickedly cool..

art is in all forms like LOVE.