Bristol billboard street art shares 'positive' message

Artwork created to share positive messages with people finding the lockdown difficult, has been released on billboards.

Bristol artist Zoe Power said she wants her art to inspire those stuck indoors who feel "stagnant" and to help those who miss "letting go" in music venues.

Her piece depicts people dancing under the slogan 'We shall dance again'.

The mural inspired by the struggling music sector is part of UK-wide outdoor art project 'Your Space Or Mine'.

The project aims to amplify positive messages using the public spaces that people are exploring during the pandemic.

Ms Power said musicians and dancers have been getting in touch with her to say her art "inspired" them when they felt down.

"It's important to use public space for the good so if I can help change how people feel when they move around the city then that's great," she said.

"We feel suffocated and stagnant stuck indoors which is why I think dancing is a good topic, it's an expression that signifies letting go that we haven't been able to do for so long."

Bristol dance teacher Catarina Gentili put a video of herself dancing the Lindy Hop in front of the artwork online and said it inspired her to share the social element of dancing that she "misses the most".

She said: "It's beautiful, the colours spark joy and Lindy Hop is a social dance that is supposed to bring communities together so I felt like the art connected to that.

"It was a spur of the moment thing and it was my most joyful moment of 2021."

Marketing manager for art collective Jack Arts, Miranda Banfield, helped to bring together the Bristol exhibition and said: "Zoe's positive, uplifting and vibrant characters provide a sense of optimism with a nod to our struggling live music venues.

"The art was the perfect fit for Bristol, reminding us that things will get better and most importantly, we shall dance again."