U-Student Carlisle is located on bustling John Street in Central Carlisle and is home to 39 student residents each year. Thanks to its prominent positioning, the building is no stranger to the rich history of the city and in fact is just under a 2-minute wander across the Caldew River to Carlisle Castle and the famous bronze Cracker Packers statue can also be found directly outside the U-Student main entrance, with a view of the iconic McVities biscuit factory in the background.
In September 2021 and thanks to Carlisle based company U-Student Group who own and operate high-quality student accommodation in multiple cities, a fresh new landmark was introduced into Carlisle in the form of this unique mural. With the help of Ben Heslop, Founder of Carlisle based Blank Wall Assassins, and the ultra-talented Dutch street artist Tymon De Laat who is known for his bold artwork that can be seen across the globe, the mural now forms part of an elite, worldwide portfolio of street art. The piece is the latest in the Carlisle wide project and aims to bring community art into the realm of Carlisle tourists and residents to spark unique conversations and bring light to gloomy Cumbrian days!
Work started early on 12th September and the portrait quickly progressed and started to take shape.
As well as international exposure, the project was picked up in regional news and it was great to see local support for the creative addition to the city. You can read the full article here plus see the broadcast too!
Tymon who was the official artist for the Eurovision Song Contest in 2021 for his home country The Netherlands, explained to his large social media following that this mural is the second wall that he has painted for the lovely city of Carlisle and he followed up to say that “This time I am painting a portrait based on my travels through Asia in 2009. This particular photo I shot in Don Det Laos when this beautiful girl gave a 1,000-mile stare into the camera”.
The mural is now finished and has been named “All From This Earth“.
The final mural can be seen below or in person at 17 John St, Carlisle CA2 5TR (what3words)
Check out this amazing behind-the-scenes video showing snapshots of the mural creation in action, or watch the full video here!
