A Glasgow perspective: picture this

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Johnnie Walker’s Striding Man logo adorns a pub wall in Finnieston. I have a folder full of street art images: this is one which definitely benefits from Becky’s Square Perspectives challenge. Originally there were three men, but the third had an ugly red barrier in front of him. Chopping him off has made his companions much more dynamic so that I almost believe they are about to stride out from the wall.

Here are a few (a lot?) more which work as squares, starting with a couple from the City Centre. Glasgow has its very own panda (by Klingatron) in Gordon Lane, and what looks like the world’s most economical taxi (by Rogue-One) is in nearby Mitchell Street.

Glasgow panda by Klingatron
Rogue One taxi mural

The mural of St Mungo and his robin, by Smug, is on High Street and has featured before, but this is a new perspective. It’s hard to get a good photograph from the road – there are often cars parked in front, and you can’t stand back far enough without being mown down by traffic. I like this image of him taken from the grassy area behind. This was in February – there would be too many leaves on the trees for it to work now.

Details now from two contrasting mosaics in stations. On the left, in Central Station, is part of a mural by professional artist Jude Burkhauser. It dates from 1989 and was commissioned for Glasgow’s reign as European Capital of Culture in 1990. The other tiled mural is from my local station, Hyndland, and runs the full length of the pedestrian tunnel under the platforms. It was designed by local schoolchildren and dates from roughly the same time.

Central Station mural by Jude Burkhauser
Hyndland Station mural by local schoolchildren

Two perspectives on this colourful work on the Forth and Clyde canal at Ruchill which I watched being created last year. In the first, I captured the artist, Sharon Scotland, at work, and in the second John got a nice reflection in the water below.

Artist at work
Canal reflections

Of course, not all murals are commissioned and sanitised. Another pedestrian tunnel, this time under the Expressway at the Riverside Museum, has a changing roster of graffiti art. I like the little chap doing the painting: not so sure about the one at the end.

Negative Destination’s little figures and the Big Heids pop up everywhere, and often disappear very quickly. Here are examples from the Kelvin Walkway at Inn Deep and behind Ruchill Church.

Negative destination at Inn Deep
Big Heids at Ruchill

Time offers a different perspective on Mustio by the River Kelvin. The first image is from April 2019, the other is from June this year when both vegetation and supplementary graffiti had increased.

Mustio April 2019
Mustio June 2020

Finally, this was an official mural, named Betty Brown’s Eyes after a local activist in Garnethill who died in 2006. It was vandalised soon after it appeared and has since been painted over. Interestingly, the vandals have left a comment on their own artistic perspective. (Note to self, I might be overusing that word!)

Betty Brown’s Eyes
Betty Brown mural vandalised

This is my last contribution to Becky’s Square Perspectives challenge. I’ve really enjoyed this way of collating some of the many unused pictures of Glasgow still lurking in my files, and may well continue with it at a later date – though without the necessity to make everything square. I might not continue with the musical accompaniment, but today I offer you – what else? – Blondie and Picture This. If you don’t love the luminous Miss Debbie Harry I’m afraid I just don’t know what’s wrong with you.

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65 Comments »

  7. Pingback: July in Perspective – The life of B

  10. I like the striding men, they really do look like they are just about to step out of the wall, the little creatures at Inn Deep are cute and the St. Mungo one is great but wow! – the one you posted in the comment above is stunning 🙂 🙂

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  11. Some of those pieces of street art are absolutely stunning aren’t they? Really bring old run-down places to life. The St Mungo’s one is amazing. Always in awe of anyone that can create something from nothing like that, such a skill.

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  16. I asked the local shopkeeper a few doors down from where that tramp and robin mural was painted as to its location and he didn’t know despite it being the gable end of the same row the shop was on. It had been up a couple of months by then. I liked all that GBGB’s music scene in the New York.Bowery. Blondie, Television, Talking Heads, Ramones, Patti Smith. So many well known bands started to get known from that one place in the 1970s.

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  17. Lovely collection of street art and I’m so pleased that Glasgow is holding its head up in this field. I think it’s so important to give street artists exposure like this. If I had to pick a favourite it would be St. Mungo. The artist has captured a feeling of compassion and love in that mural which is very touching.

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  18. A great collection of street art. Glasgow seems to be well adorned. We really need to go back to visit your town sooner than later…

    Montreal also has a reputation for street art murals and we even have an annual festival to add to the collection. I have to look at what they are doing this year as the festival has been cancelled but murals are still being planned. (Suzanne)

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      • There are actually two Leonard Cohen murals in Montreal. The first one is probably the best known one and is in the city centre. There are great views of this murals from the Art Museum. The link above provides a few pictures of the murals. That mural is based on a photograph that his daughter took of him and done by two artists: Gene Pendon (a Canadian) and El Mac (An American).

        The second one is by a Canadian artist, Kevin Ledo, and was made during the Mural Festival I told you about. It is on a side of a building close to where he lived when in Montreal.

        Interestingly enough, Cohen wasn’t very well known in Montreal even though he was born here and stayed attached to the city even he wasn’t here often. We actually discovered him in Toronto when we lived there. We have pretty much all of his albums though we never saw him in concert like you did.

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  20. These are great and I love art so that saying is so wrong I would cover that saying up. The man holding the Robin is so eloquent and I love the Panda. This song is really nice to listen to

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  21. Hi Anabel – the Johnnie Walker mural is just brilliant … and really stands out – just love it. Take care – Hilary

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