Murals of sporting heroes have become a familiar sight across London.
Behind those images are artists and local organisations who recognise the potential to connect people through sport and street art.
Artist Jimmy C felt that connection when his mural of Usain Bolt in Shoreditch became a defining image of the 2012 London Olympics.
He said: “There is an instant recognisability from sports fans when working on this kind of work.
“It attracts the attention and comments of people who I don’t normally interact with.
“Normally it is considered that sports audiences and arts audiences are different crowds.
“I think of the half-time shows with musicians where the fans really only came to see their team play.
“Sporting events are more action and adrenaline based, whilst appreciating a work of art is often more of a personal and contemplative experience.
“I think people appreciate things when they can recognise the talent and know that there is a lot of hard work and effort behind it.
“In that sense artists and athletes can share a similar ground.”
Jody Thomas began painting in 1987 and was an early member of Bristol’s street art scene.
He said: “The graffiti culture was coming across from New York, in times before the internet, social media and mobile phones, as crazy as that sounds.
“I was a bit of a loner, a sort of art monk, with a girl’s name.
“I just ended up embracing it and that became my sort of superpower.”
As the nephew of former Bristol City and Newcastle United goalkeeper, Mike Mahoney, Thomas grew up with football around him.
He said: “I remember as a kid collecting football cards, stickers and I remember seeing a lot of these guys and here I am now painting them.”
Thomas witnessed a similar phenomenon among other fans while painting Leeds United legend, Norman Hunter.
He said: “So I’ve done the left eye and someone came along and said, that’s Norman Hunter.
“And I thought, right, I’ve nailed it. They know these people like their family members.
“That passion is matched by ours for painting. The fans just love to see it and we love to do it.”
However, the partisan response to his work emerged when he was asked to paint three rival players on Tottenham High Road.
He said: “I had painted the stadium and then when I started to put the players on, they’re like, ‘whoa, wait, what are you doing? He didn’t play for us’, that tribalism suddenly came.
“I was doing it right in the middle of Tottenham heartland.
“So that’s declaring war, and again, you saw that passion.”
Frankie Curtis’ affinity for sport has grown alongside her career, leading to a collaboration with the NBA.
She said: “I’d worked with a guy for Lids, and he got me the contact with the NBA, and it was because of what I’d done for them that they wanted me to do something similar.
“I never was too much into sports. I’m not super sporty, I’m a lot more of a creative person.
“But I do enjoy the feeling of it.”
As well as her pieces with the NBA, Frankie worked on the England Women’s Euro 2022 parade.
She said: “Sometimes you meet kids that are interested in art and they never really realise that it’s something that they can do for a job, and it’s the same with the women’s Euros.
“They are mostly male-dominated fields, so it’s nice to get involved as a woman and show other little girls what is possible and what you can achieve.”
Kevin Lincoln is the secretary to the trustees at Tottenham Community Sports Centre, which provides sports and community facilities for the local area.
He has seen that impact first-hand since a mural of former Tottenham Hotspur captain, Ledley King, was painted on the centre’s exterior in 2022.
He said: “We try to go out and keep children away from gangs.
“They come to us and we’ve got over 80 clubs to use on a weekly basis.
“When we have functions, there’s every chance that Ledley will come over.
“He was here the other week for an Alzheimer’s club. It’s been good for us and for the area.
“We’re a small local charity and that mural makes us part of the community. It puts us on the map because it’s so recognisable.
“And although Tottenham don’t directly do anything here, it gives us a bit of a link to the club.
“We’re now, ‘oh yeah, Tottenham Community Sports Centre, the place with the Ledley King mural’.”
Featured Image Frankie Curtis’ Mural at NBA Store Oxford Street Credit: Frankie Curtis
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