Eyesore to eyecatching: art transforms boarded up London shops

Shoe shop: an empty unit in Streatham, south London, gets a makeover.
Shoe shop: an empty unit in Streatham, south London, gets a makeover.

I usually run a mile from any sniff of a town or city rebranding (anyone remember “Staines-upon-Thames” or indeed “Proud to be Slough“?).

But I’m interested in the bold focus on street art and local artists in the drive to return a sliver of London to its retail glory – “Streatham – the West End of South London” no less.

Streatham architects and design company, Beep Studio, is collaborating with the local Business Improvement District, InStreatham, to create a “voids trail” that reflects the area’s local personalities “in a bid to encourage more people to explore Streatham High Road”.

The campaign features artwork on shop fronts inspired by seven famous celebrities who lived in Streatham – shoppers will explore the area’s shops via the trail, visiting each unit and stamping their trail maps to show they have visited the shop.

No prizes for guessing which South London-born model inspired the vertiginous platform depicted on one empty front.

I’ve fond memories of the longest high street in Europe (Streatham High Road), up the road from my former home in Brixton – oh, sorry, of course I mean “Brixton Village”.

Anyway, in terms of the Streatham campaign, I like the idea of the installations and light displays by local artists that accompany the campaign. This all coincides with Small Business Saturday, a non-political drive to encourage people to shop locally.

The Streatham shopfront trail launches on Saturday along with the Christmas light switch on.

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