After years of vandalism and neglect, an iconic Dalston mural promoting peace will finally be restored along with a renovation of the unsafe building on which it is painted.
The Carnival Peace Mural has long been need of repair, with graffiti sprayed along the bottom and pieces of it falling out.
Hackney Council has announced that a £72,000 restoration of the publicly owned mural will take place over the next two years.
After the repairs are made a further £420,000 will be spent to ensure that 15 Dalston Lane and the surrounding buildings are structurally safe.
In spots where the mural is coming away from the wall, plugs will be put in to keep the brickwork together. The mural will then be cleaned and repainted, before being sprayed with a protective coating to help prevent any future graffiti.
Artist Paul Butler has been chosen by independent experts at Hirst Conservation to lead the restoration of the mural which was originally designed by Ray Walker.
Dalston mural is a Hackney landmark
Completed in 1985, it depicts the Hackney Peace Carnival that took place in 1983 and was chosen as the album cover by recent BRIT award winners Rudimental.
Erola Arcalis, 27, who works at Dalston Eastern Curve Garden, said: “The mural has been here since the ’70s – it’s iconic for Dalston. I think it’s a good reference place, if you say the mural everyone knows where you mean.”
Councillor Karen Alcock, cabinet member for property and housing policy, added: “Dalston Peace Mural is an important local landmark which has stood up to the test of time pretty well. These works will help to extend its life and to restore patches of damage so that it can be enjoyed for years to come.
“We’re very pleased to be able to involve Paul, who was a contemporary and friend of Ray Walker.”
Mr Walker died, aged 38, before the mural could be completed, and his widow Anna and fellow artist Mick Jones completed the work, using a specialised paint made of minerals and waterglass, known as Keim. Mr Jones died, aged 68, in 2012.
Mrs Walker voiced her support for the choice, saying: “Paul has a unique knowledge of the Keim paint process and mural renovation and repair and is a highly talented mural painter. He is therefore the artist who I and my son Roland wish to repaint the mural.”
Butler previously worked with Mr Walker to paint The Battle of Cable Street, a mural in Wapping representing the famous 1936 anti-fascist demonstration.
