We Love Eccles: Outdoor art installation to celebrate town’s regeneration

Salford City Council has announced We Love Eccles, a large-scale art project delivered by global art producer Wild in Art, that will be exhibited on hoardings around the town centre this summer.

The installation coincides with the town’s first phase of regeneration work. We Love Eccles will see large-scale artworks from local community groups bring striking colour and creativity to the area, alongside the first stages of work to transform the town centre.

The hoardings have been put in place as demolition work on parts of the town’s shopping centre and its multi-storey car park began, and have doubled up as a huge outdoor gallery showcasing the artistic talents of local schools and community groups.

Salford City Council commissioned prolific global art producer, and brains behind Bee in the City, Wild in Art, to engage with a selection of groups from across the local area, asking people: ‘what do you love about Eccles?’.

The responses to Wild in Art from the Eccles community have been transformed by year 4 pupils at St Andrew’s CE Primary, students from St Patrick’s RC High School, a youth group from The Castle Community Centre, men’s peer support group Talk About It Mate and members of Salford Heart Care’s Healthy Heart Group.

Each group was supported by a professional artist, who worked closely with them to turn their ideas into stunning pieces of art that will serve as a ‘love letter to Eccles’ and take pride of place in the town centre.

Inspiration for the artworks ranged from connections created by local transport links, the town’s ever-evolving mix of architecture, and precious personal memories of life in Eccles. School children created a scene of drawings of animals, people and vehicles that represent what they love about their hometown, and young people identified key local landmarks that were worked into a unique doodle map of Eccles.

A mosaic created by artist Lauren Mullarkey with the Healthy Heart Group features pieces of various items donated by group members, including cups and saucers bought from Eccles Market, along with dress jewellery, badges and tiles they had at home. Referencing the town’s coat of arms, the finished mosaic has been photographed for inclusion on the hoardings and will also be exhibited at Eccles Gateway.

Deputy City Mayor and Lead Member for Finance, Support Services and Regeneration, Councillor Jack Youd said: “It is wonderful to see this bright colourful celebration of community pride, We Love Eccles, on display in the heart of the town centre as we embark on this period of major change.

“Local people overwhelmingly told us they wanted to see bold changes in the town centre. The demolition and redevelopment of Eccles Shopping Centre and the disused multi-storey car park were viewed as a priority. The demolition will give us an opportunity to create a more vibrant town centre that meets the needs of existing residents as well as attracting new people to contribute to the future for Eccles!”

Head of Creative Development at Wild in Art, Ben Reed, says: “We’ve really enjoyed working with local members of the community in Eccles on this project over the past few months. The artwork that has been created is going to look amazing on the hoardings.”

Salford City Council was awarded £5.4m Capital Regeneration Project funding from the UK Government to purchase and demolish Eccles Shopping Centre and the multi-storey car park, which will act as a catalyst to regenerate the town centre and secure a brighter future for Eccles.

The demolition is being done in phases, with phase 1 already underway and due to finish by the end of the year. During this period, the rest of the town centre (including Church Street, Boothway and The Mall) remains open for business as usual.

We Love Eccles will be on display from Fri 25 July.