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Mural 'used as public toilet' restored by artist

Oscar Edwards
BBC News
BBC Tee2Sugars stood in the alley. He is wearing his painting overalls with spots of colour dotted all over his trousers. On his left you can see artwork of fashion designer Laura Ashley and on the right you have boxer Johnny Owen.BBC
Tee2Sugars wants to use his art to breathe new life into town centres

A street artist in Merthyr Tydfil has brought a bleak alley back to life in the hope that it will dissuade people from using it as a public toilet.

Tee2Sugars collaborated with the council to transform Hong Kong Alley in the town centre.

It previously featured artwork that paid tribute to the area's rich boxing history, with fighters such as "Merthyr Matchstick" Johnny Owen immortalised.

But the mural was vandalised and then stolen in 2012, leaving the alley in disrepair.

Tee has been painting for 16 years but has been a full-time artist since losing his job during lockdown.

The 34-year-old is part of the We Love Merthyr project, which aims to regenerate the town.

Merthyr Tydfil council wanted the project to "bring a bit of colour" to the area, according to Tee.

"They also wanted it to involve the people of Merthyr in the creation of the artwork," he said.

Tee managed to round up more than 30 locals to help him finish the mural across a weekend.

"We had three-year-olds, all the way up to grandparents joining in," he said.

"The majority of it was done by children between the ages of 10 and 18."

Two kids hold spray painting cans as they add to the mural in Hong Kong Alley. They are wearing protective white masks. The closest person has a black rucksack and black clothing. They are adding a border to a pink design. The person furthest away is wearing a grey hoodie with a black bag. They are drawing a blue line on the wall.
Children of all ages contributed to the mural after Tee asked for help on his social media accounts

The previous designs paid tribute to the boxing heroes born in the area such as Johnny Owen and Howard Winstone.

Tee decided to keep the pair, as well as boxer Eddie Thomas, as part of the redesigned mural.

Merthyr-born designers Laura Ashley and Julien Macdonald are also featured as a nod to the town's impact on the fashion industry.

Tee said the project had been a "very big success" but admitted it may not deter people from using the alley as a toilet.

"The problem is we don't have a lot of public toilets in the UK. When my wife was pregnant we were always struggling to find one," he said.

Tee said that public urination is a "social issue" but hoped the "artwork will encourage the area to be used less as a toilet".

The alley shown before the renovations were made. The walls on either side are chipped and the paint has faded after years of degradation.
Hong Kong Alley, pictured before the redesign, had fallen into disrepair in recent years
The mural inside Hong Kong Alley showing Julien Macdonald on the right and Laura Ashley on the left.
The artist painted the borough's boxing legends but also included other local legends including Julien Macdonald

Local resident Gareth Lyon and his nine-year-old daughter Seren "couldn't get enough of it" and decided to help out on both days.

"It makes me proud to see all the people from Merthyr that have done really nice things," said Seren.

Gareth said it was great learning about the "Merthyr legends" and it made both of them feel "really proud" to be Welsh.

The pair also learned more about the people depicted and Gareth said it would encourage others to do the same.

"We didn't know about Laura Ashley so much. So that pushes people to go home and research more about them," he said.

Gareth and his daughter Seren smiling stood in front of the mural. There is a message saying 'You can do big things' on the left of it.
Gareth and his daughter Seren felt "really proud" after contributing to the mural on both days

Gareth said the area had been neglected since the closure of nearby Victoria Street bus station in 2021.

"The whole community has thought of improvements that could be made there," he said.

"We need to make our town better and make it more attractive to businesses."

Gareth said Tee's passion shone through during the process and that it would mean more people took care of the mural.

"He comes across like a really local artist and hopefully things will be better looked after."

Howard Winstone is in the centre of this shot with a butterfly to his right. It is another shot of the mural but this time from a different angle.
A local resident says the mural's redesign will encourage people to learn more about the "Merthyr legends"

Merthyr council commended Tee for creating a "wonderfully bright and colourful space".

A council spokesperson said: "Acknowledging the achievements of some of our local heroes through this artwork is a powerful way of paying respect to them and inspiring the next generation."

They added that the alley had been transformed by the "incredible artwork" making it a "real focal point that we hope will be better used by shoppers and visitors".

"All towns face challenges within the night-time economy with public urination, however we are hopeful the new lighting and CCTV will deter such behaviour."

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