13
Jun
Knaresborough house gets marvellous mural makeover
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A house in Knaresborough has been transformed – by the addition of massive honeysuckle flowers and a giant kingfisher.
Moat House, on Brewerton Street, has had a rather unusual paint job, thanks to Harrogate-based mural artist Sam Porter.
Sam already has some murals on show around the district, including a gable-end around the corner on Cheapside and the side of Monsoon's shop in Harrogate, and has more in the pipeline.
The design of the Moat House mural was based on ideas from house-owners Matt Harvey and Heather Coles, who have lived there for the last three years.
Matt told the Stray Ferret:
We gave Sam the brief and he interpreted it and put all his artistic effort into it. We’re delighted with the result. We wanted to give Sam as free a rein artistically as possible, and he really went above and beyond with it. He's done a wonderful job.
The inspiration behind the design for the mural came from a variety of sources, but the idea to have one at all sprang from a suprisingly practical source.
Matt said:
We were modernising the house, and that included getting external insulation fitted. That involved scaffolding and re-rendering, so we thought we’d take the opportunity to do something a bit more exciting.
What we were looking for was something that respected the tradition of Knaresborough – hence the checkerboard pattern – but that gave it a twist. We didn’t want something that would look like ‘heritage cosplay’ – we wanted something that would acknowledge the heritage and take it in a slightly new direction.
The vortex effect echoes the trompe l’oeil murals that you can see around Knaresborough, and the kingfisher is a nod to the time when we lived on a narrowboat on the Leeds-Liverpool canal.
Sam added:
There are other influences in it too, such as Escher [the artist best known for his optical illusions] and Alice in Wonderland.
It’s got a magical feel to it, and it’s quite playful. There’s a really nice combination – there's the traditional aspect, but we’ve played with that and turned it into something really unique.
The unique design on the gable end. Image: Richard Maud.
Sam has a university degree in fine art printmaking and has been creating murals for more than 20 years – his first was for the BBC in Manchester.
His business, Mural Minded, took off following the covid pandemic. He said:
During lockdown, nature was making me feel better and helping me get through it, and I realised it was helping a lot of other people as well. It reminded people of the importance of beautifying their surroundings, and that made me want to paint more natural things.
Sam Porter of Mural Minded.
The mural is already leading to more work for Sam – he's currently working on a job for the council in Oldham, and has a couple of big commissions coming up in Knaresborough and one in Starbeck.
He said:
Whenever I do a big public mural, it always leads on to other murals: work comes from work.
I’ve had quite a few people get in touch about jobs.
Matt added:
There’s been a lot of interest from other residents who have seen Sam painting the mural.
Knaresborough already has a slight reputation for being a bit arty, and I hope people see this as being a positive contribution to the environment.
He said he hoped it might inspire others to consider what they might do with any blank walls they may have, adding:
I’d be very happy to see more artwork around the town.
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