Richard Buxton, Stoke-on-Trent City Centre BID Manager, talks about the 100 Years 100 Faces artwork – a mural featuring famous people and community champions from the city – which was funded by the BID and unveiled on Marsh Street in Hanley last weekend.
“Stoke-on-Trent’s centenary is something to truly celebrate. There have already been some wonderful events, such as the People’s Parade, and we at the BID wanted to contribute to those celebrations.
After much discussion, we decided to create a legacy piece – a mural featuring 100 famous people and community champions from the city – that would remind us for years to come how amazing our city is and how inspirational the people who helped create it are.
All the usual outcomes – footfall, tourism, branding, civic pride and so on – formed part of our thinking, but most of all, we hope that future generations will feel like ‘Proud Stokies’ too.
We’ve worked with Rob Fenton on many previous projects, and choosing him as lead artist was an easy decision. Rob is truly committed to our city and its history, as shown by his previous work on the John Smith and Belstaff murals.
Rob brought Alistair Barnett on board too, and that proved to be an amazing selection. Alistair is well-versed in portrait tattoos, and seeing that skill translated into this mural has been brilliant.
We considered a number of walls in the city centre for the mural, but the Marsh Street car park location had easy access for viewing both on foot and from passing traffic, so that’s where we settled.
Selecting the 100 faces was a huge task. Initially, around 250 names were put forward, and the public were asked to add their own contributions. We received so many, including plenty of unsung heroes from the community.
From that list, a panel of 14 – including Paul Williams, Hannah Ault, our Lord Mayor, and the artists themselves – chose the final 100. Their deliberations took a full day, and it was difficult to leave certain people off, especially after reading all their stories.
The immediate feedback has been amazing. I don’t think we fully realised just how great the impact would be. Coverage has been wonderful, from supportive local influencers to Channel 5 news. It will also be seen in a future documentary about one of our 100’s lives on a popular streaming service, so keep your eyes peeled for that.
A book is in process, which will include much more detail about the project and the stories of the 100 faces. We’re also receiving requests for prints of the mural, which we’ll consider, and in terms of other murals, public art, and community engagement – well, watch this space!
For the BID, this project is a starting point. I truly believe it can be a catalyst for change. City centres are changing across the country, and we cannot afford to be left behind as others forge forward.
We have a large bank of tourist attractions in the city, and sometimes we forget what a lasting legacy our pottery industry has, led by names like Emma Bridgewater, Wedgwood and Middleport.
We hope this mural will be another reason for people to enjoy our city and protect this vital industry. Artwork enhances the ‘look’ of a place, and we hope it will help attract future investment in our local arts sector, city businesses, and of course the BID.
This project grew from an initial conversation 18 months ago, and what the BID has delivered has gone beyond anything I thought it would. That’s the result of having great partners and a great BID team. The BID does so much to improve our city centre, and we are all proud of this project and its result.”
