The People's Painting: A Mural for Glasgow

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0:00:03 > 0:00:07As Glasgow prepares to host this summer's Commonwealth Games,

0:00:07 > 0:00:10two artists are setting out to create a legacy

0:00:10 > 0:00:13which will last long beyond the sporting events.

0:00:13 > 0:00:16It's not just us stamping our identity on an area,

0:00:16 > 0:00:18it's taking a little bit of everyone

0:00:18 > 0:00:20to create something hopefully beautiful.

0:00:24 > 0:00:28In a city which has a long tradition of public murals,

0:00:28 > 0:00:31the artists are planning a large-scale wall painting

0:00:31 > 0:00:32with a difference,

0:00:32 > 0:00:36one which reflects what Glasgow means to the people who live here.

0:00:36 > 0:00:39We wanted it to be a collaboration between us and the city.

0:00:44 > 0:00:47Michelangelo has came to the East End of Glasgow.

0:00:47 > 0:00:49We're very delighted.

0:01:06 > 0:01:09Just beyond Glasgow's famous Barrowlands

0:01:09 > 0:01:12and home to an equally famous football ground,

0:01:12 > 0:01:15the area of Parkhead in Glasgow's East End

0:01:15 > 0:01:19is where many of the Commonwealth Games venues are situated.

0:01:22 > 0:01:25But it's also where artists Louise Chappell and Becky Bolton

0:01:25 > 0:01:27are going to create their wall painting.

0:01:29 > 0:01:33Today, they've come to the corner of Beattock and Crail Street

0:01:33 > 0:01:37to look at the gable end site for the mural for the first time.

0:01:37 > 0:01:39Maybe it's a lot bigger than we expect

0:01:39 > 0:01:42- and we'll be suitably surprised! - I don't know what I'm hoping for!

0:01:42 > 0:01:44- OK, oh!- Oh, there?

0:01:44 > 0:01:47- There it is.- OK! I think that's doable.

0:01:47 > 0:01:49- Yeah, that's totally fine.- Yeah.

0:01:49 > 0:01:52So we've been told that we can do whatever we want with this wall

0:01:52 > 0:01:55but the fact that it already has this, sort of, red line

0:01:55 > 0:01:58that then echoes in all the surrounding buildings...

0:01:58 > 0:02:01I think we'd probably use that as an architectural element.

0:02:01 > 0:02:03Do you think? Yeah, I think it gives us a really good

0:02:03 > 0:02:07- natural proportion.- We want this to fit in with what's around it.

0:02:07 > 0:02:10- We don't want it to become this new blank canvas. - It doesn't need to jar.

0:02:10 > 0:02:13- It's already part of...- It needs to be an enhancement of the existing...

0:02:13 > 0:02:15- Yeah.- ..space.- Yeah.

0:02:15 > 0:02:17I guess the weather might be an issue

0:02:17 > 0:02:20- for an outdoor painting in Glasgow for a month.- "Might!"

0:02:20 > 0:02:22I mean, it is June.

0:02:22 > 0:02:26If it's, like, really solid rain for a couple of days, what can we do?

0:02:26 > 0:02:28- Cry.- Cry!

0:02:28 > 0:02:31I think we have enough stamina.

0:02:31 > 0:02:34- I think so, too. - We've been in training.

0:02:34 > 0:02:35Louise and Becky met

0:02:35 > 0:02:39when they were studying painting at Glasgow School of Art

0:02:39 > 0:02:41and for the last seven years have been working together

0:02:41 > 0:02:44as Good Wives and Warriors.

0:02:44 > 0:02:46Their projects span both the commercial

0:02:46 > 0:02:48and fine art worlds...

0:02:49 > 0:02:52from magazine illustrations

0:02:52 > 0:02:54to brand logos,

0:02:54 > 0:02:57restaurant interiors

0:02:57 > 0:03:00to large-scale art installations around the world.

0:03:00 > 0:03:05But it's the city of Glasgow that's inspired this latest project.

0:03:05 > 0:03:09Glasgow's got a real history of knocking down and rebuilding

0:03:09 > 0:03:10and regenerating.

0:03:10 > 0:03:12And I think that murals and gable ends

0:03:12 > 0:03:14can be really important in that,

0:03:14 > 0:03:17because they do lift the spirit of an area,

0:03:17 > 0:03:18making something more beautiful.

0:03:18 > 0:03:21The three-storey wall painting in the East End

0:03:21 > 0:03:24will be the first time Good Wives and Warriors have tackled

0:03:24 > 0:03:26a large-scale public mural.

0:03:26 > 0:03:28But they're planning to get a little help

0:03:28 > 0:03:30from the people of Parkhead.

0:03:30 > 0:03:32This painting is called the People's Painting

0:03:32 > 0:03:35and that idea...

0:03:35 > 0:03:37Well, it comes from the People's Palace,

0:03:37 > 0:03:40which is one of our favourite museums in Glasgow.

0:03:41 > 0:03:44It's not just us stamping our identity on an area.

0:03:44 > 0:03:45It's taking a little of everyone

0:03:45 > 0:03:48to create something hopefully beautiful.

0:03:48 > 0:03:52We wanted it to be a collaboration between us and the city.

0:03:52 > 0:03:55Louise and Becky have put up posters across the East End

0:03:55 > 0:03:57asking for people to send them ideas.

0:03:57 > 0:04:00But they're also out and about to find out first-hand

0:04:00 > 0:04:03what locals would like to see on the wall.

0:04:03 > 0:04:07I'm going to take a picture with the clootie dumplings sign.

0:04:07 > 0:04:10Is there anything...an object that you think might...?

0:04:10 > 0:04:12Well, I think the object just burned there, yesterday.

0:04:12 > 0:04:13So you'd say the art school?

0:04:13 > 0:04:16I would say the art school was a big, big, massive feature.

0:04:16 > 0:04:19Charles Rennie Mackintosh, anything along those lines.

0:04:19 > 0:04:20Let's go and have a look in here.

0:04:20 > 0:04:22- At least it's a bit more rummagey.- Yeah.

0:04:22 > 0:04:24Oh, look at the old sketches.

0:04:26 > 0:04:29We are looking for any antiques or objects

0:04:29 > 0:04:33- that are particularly from Glasgow. - This is Glasgow Bell.

0:04:33 > 0:04:36- Was Glasgow Bell a pottery...? - Yes, pottery.

0:04:36 > 0:04:39And they closed about 1900.

0:04:39 > 0:04:42The details in them are so unusual.

0:04:42 > 0:04:45- Yes, it's quite modern, isn't it?- Yeah.

0:04:46 > 0:04:47The Glasgow Bell.

0:04:51 > 0:04:55- Some nice tree.- A tree. - Maybe a big pigeon.- Oh, big pigeons!

0:04:55 > 0:04:58We can definitely put some pigeons in it.

0:04:58 > 0:04:59Yeah, that's good.

0:04:59 > 0:05:03Well, the spirit of Glasgow, the spirit of this end of the city

0:05:03 > 0:05:06is dookits, you call them - pigeon huts.

0:05:06 > 0:05:08- You see all the pigeon huts about the East End.- Uh-huh!

0:05:08 > 0:05:10I've done it since I was 14 years old.

0:05:12 > 0:05:15Back in their studio, Louise and Becky sift through

0:05:15 > 0:05:17all the ideas they've received

0:05:17 > 0:05:20and work out how they're going to combine them.

0:05:20 > 0:05:22Bream? I think it was maybe bream or trout

0:05:22 > 0:05:25going into a pigeon. So those little claws.

0:05:25 > 0:05:29Here's some others. So we're trying to do the different versions of...

0:05:29 > 0:05:33pigeon wings, fish tail...

0:05:33 > 0:05:36This one's maybe a bit weird

0:05:36 > 0:05:38fish head, pigeon bottom.

0:05:38 > 0:05:40The two animals people kept referring to

0:05:40 > 0:05:42were the doos and the fish.

0:05:42 > 0:05:45And then to have them coming down the painting,

0:05:45 > 0:05:47changing from one to the other.

0:05:47 > 0:05:49We tried to speak to as many people as possible,

0:05:49 > 0:05:52to kind of get everyone's individual idea

0:05:52 > 0:05:56of what the spirit of Glasgow was and what it meant to them.

0:05:56 > 0:05:59So we're really trying to use our magpie approach

0:05:59 > 0:06:02to collect as many images as possible.

0:06:02 > 0:06:04It would be great in the end if people can point and say,

0:06:04 > 0:06:07- "That's mine."- "That's my bit." - Yeah.- That's what we want.

0:06:10 > 0:06:12While Good Wives and Warriors

0:06:12 > 0:06:15put the finishing touches to their grand design

0:06:15 > 0:06:16for the 9x8 metre mural,

0:06:16 > 0:06:19back on site, the scaffolding goes up

0:06:19 > 0:06:22and the wall is whitewashed, ready for work to begin.

0:06:23 > 0:06:26Although the mural will be predominantly black and white,

0:06:26 > 0:06:31Becky's called on some local help to create a green wash in the centre

0:06:31 > 0:06:33to represent the hills of Glasgow.

0:06:33 > 0:06:36But they're not having much luck with the weather.

0:06:36 > 0:06:38I think we're just going to stop.

0:06:38 > 0:06:41Cos we're quite worried that all the paint is just...

0:06:41 > 0:06:42being washed off the wall!

0:06:42 > 0:06:44We might just give up for today.

0:06:46 > 0:06:48Oh, yeah look at it!

0:06:48 > 0:06:50Looks amazing though, doesn't it?!

0:06:56 > 0:06:59Fortunately the sun is shining when Louise arrives to join Becky

0:06:59 > 0:07:02and start on the intricate design work,

0:07:02 > 0:07:03which is just as well

0:07:03 > 0:07:06as they have under three weeks to complete the mural.

0:07:06 > 0:07:08- The streets are going to start down here.- Yeah,

0:07:08 > 0:07:12- I drew in the triangles already. - Amazing.

0:07:12 > 0:07:14Louise is starting at the very centre of the wall,

0:07:14 > 0:07:17giving pride of place to the doos and dookits

0:07:17 > 0:07:19suggested by so many local people.

0:07:28 > 0:07:31In Parkhead, collecting, breeding and flying pigeons

0:07:31 > 0:07:32is a long-held tradition

0:07:32 > 0:07:35and the area has the highest concentration

0:07:35 > 0:07:38of man-made huts, or dookits, in the city.

0:07:38 > 0:07:42MAN IMITATES PIGEONS

0:07:42 > 0:07:44- Come on, hen. - HE COOS AGAIN

0:07:46 > 0:07:49I was still in my primary school when I started the pigeons.

0:07:49 > 0:07:52You just watched the old men flying pigeons

0:07:52 > 0:07:54and you went to dog school

0:07:54 > 0:07:56and watch the pigeons getting caught and all that.

0:07:56 > 0:07:59And ever since then... You build your hut

0:07:59 > 0:08:02and that's me for 40 years now, 50 years.

0:08:02 > 0:08:04And now I'm the older guy!

0:08:04 > 0:08:07So the other kids come round and watch us flying them, now.

0:08:07 > 0:08:11And hopefully they learn off you and carry it on and carry it on.

0:08:12 > 0:08:14It's not racing pigeons,

0:08:14 > 0:08:17they're pouters, what they call pouters.

0:08:17 > 0:08:20Basically they're bred for, just, sport.

0:08:20 > 0:08:23They're just to go out and basically they've got to

0:08:23 > 0:08:26go and steal another pigeon back off the other guy

0:08:26 > 0:08:28and he's put his pigeon out to steal mine.

0:08:28 > 0:08:31And it's whatever one's got the most brains,

0:08:31 > 0:08:34whatever's cleverer than the other one.

0:08:34 > 0:08:37And hopefully it's yours that's the clever one, you know?

0:08:40 > 0:08:42If a doo likes a hen, he'll come back with her.

0:08:42 > 0:08:45And vice versa, if a hen likes a doo,

0:08:45 > 0:08:47she'll go back with him.

0:08:47 > 0:08:49You're hoping to catch as many as you can catch.

0:08:49 > 0:08:51If you've got six pair,

0:08:51 > 0:08:52you'll put your six pair out.

0:08:52 > 0:08:57And you're hoping every one can do the business and catch.

0:08:57 > 0:08:59But again, you could maybe lose two or three

0:08:59 > 0:09:02and it sets you back to the drawing board again.

0:09:02 > 0:09:03You've got to get another hen and another doo

0:09:03 > 0:09:06and start all over again with that pigeon.

0:09:23 > 0:09:25On the wall, the artists have created

0:09:25 > 0:09:28a long line of the iconic dookits

0:09:28 > 0:09:31and pigeons feature prominently throughout the design.

0:09:31 > 0:09:33This pigeon, we were just wondering

0:09:33 > 0:09:36- what it should be carrying in its feet and...- A teacake!

0:09:36 > 0:09:39..and as I wanted to eat a teacake, Louise has put a teacake in it.

0:09:39 > 0:09:41Now I can have the real object to draw from.

0:09:41 > 0:09:44But I'm going to eat it so you just get the wrapper.

0:09:54 > 0:09:56Underneath the dookits, Louise is painting a line

0:09:56 > 0:09:58of Parkhead's most striking buildings

0:09:58 > 0:10:02from the Congregational Church to the White and Bluevale flats

0:10:02 > 0:10:05and the public wash house or steamie,

0:10:05 > 0:10:07another Parkhead institution

0:10:07 > 0:10:10mentioned by many of the older residents.

0:10:10 > 0:10:12The artists have also chosen to represent the steamie

0:10:12 > 0:10:15with clouds of steam which fill up the mural

0:10:15 > 0:10:17and rain down on the city.

0:10:22 > 0:10:23Four days in

0:10:23 > 0:10:26and the artists have climbed to the very top of the scaffolding

0:10:26 > 0:10:28to add another East End landmark.

0:10:28 > 0:10:31It's a surprisingly beautiful day here in Glasgow

0:10:31 > 0:10:35so we wanted to come up here to the top level of the scaffolding

0:10:35 > 0:10:36to get some sun

0:10:36 > 0:10:39but also to finish painting the...

0:10:39 > 0:10:41What are you painting?

0:10:41 > 0:10:43The Tolbooth clock tower,

0:10:43 > 0:10:47which was one of the first things mentioned to us by Rico

0:10:47 > 0:10:49at the Val D'Oro.

0:10:49 > 0:10:50# More

0:10:50 > 0:10:53# Much more than this

0:10:53 > 0:10:58# I did it my way... #

0:10:58 > 0:11:01Glasgow means everything to me, obviously.

0:11:01 > 0:11:05Because it's given us life, it's given us our livelihood.

0:11:05 > 0:11:08- If I had to pick one thing that really moves me...- Means Glasgow.

0:11:08 > 0:11:12- Yes.- ..the Tolbooth clock. - Thank you.

0:11:12 > 0:11:14You know, I've lived with it all my life.

0:11:14 > 0:11:15And to me,

0:11:15 > 0:11:19coming down London Road, Glasgow Cross,

0:11:19 > 0:11:21the old mercat cross,

0:11:21 > 0:11:24I learn more about life than anywhere else in the whole world.

0:11:24 > 0:11:26- Aw-w, thank you.- Perfect.

0:11:29 > 0:11:32And the artists have placed the Tolbooth steeple

0:11:32 > 0:11:35in prime position at the summit of their painted Glasgow skyline.

0:11:35 > 0:11:38It's also one of the few sections of the mural

0:11:38 > 0:11:41where they've added a splash of colour.

0:11:41 > 0:11:45We're painting this trompe l'oeil archway just now

0:11:45 > 0:11:50which is going to be a fairly flat, three-colour blue sky.

0:11:50 > 0:11:55And it was inspired by the mural we went to see at the Gallowgate.

0:11:55 > 0:11:58And it's a mural that both me and Beck have loved for years.

0:11:58 > 0:12:02But it's this really very simple painting of a trompe l'oeil archway

0:12:02 > 0:12:04looking to the city beyond.

0:12:06 > 0:12:08Just the simplicity. The four colours.

0:12:08 > 0:12:10It is, it's really optimistic.

0:12:10 > 0:12:11It's a beautiful painting.

0:12:11 > 0:12:14I think with the blue, that idea of going straight into the sky

0:12:14 > 0:12:17is something you should use in our painting, too.

0:12:17 > 0:12:20- Yeah, and the strong, structural element.- Yeah, the 3D.

0:12:20 > 0:12:24Something architectural and recognisable.

0:12:24 > 0:12:26So we really wanted to reference that in this painting

0:12:26 > 0:12:29and we wanted to paint an optimistic blue sky

0:12:29 > 0:12:31for all the grey days in Glasgow.

0:12:31 > 0:12:33So we're lucky - blue sky today!

0:12:42 > 0:12:46For Louise and Becky, half the fun is finding playful ways

0:12:46 > 0:12:48to link all the ideas they've been given.

0:12:50 > 0:12:52At the moment I'm painting...

0:12:52 > 0:12:54this is the top of the sort of "stuff" triangle

0:12:54 > 0:12:57and we're just getting a few more of the elements

0:12:57 > 0:13:00that people have mentioned to us, while we can, in this area.

0:13:00 > 0:13:02So some of the older people we talked to

0:13:02 > 0:13:05were mentioning jeely pieces. They're like jam sandwiches.

0:13:05 > 0:13:07So here we have...I've done this

0:13:07 > 0:13:11as the knight from the Glasgow coat of arms.

0:13:11 > 0:13:13So he's eating the jeely pieces.

0:13:13 > 0:13:17So it's just a little sort of fun thing going on, here.

0:13:17 > 0:13:19And then this is one of the wallies,

0:13:19 > 0:13:21which is the hot water bottles.

0:13:21 > 0:13:23and they were made in a factory near here

0:13:23 > 0:13:25that someone was mentioning.

0:13:25 > 0:13:27But the whole idea of this area with the things on the chains

0:13:27 > 0:13:32was because of the guy Tam that we met on the high street, there.

0:13:32 > 0:13:35- Could I interest you in some of my products...- What have you got?!

0:13:35 > 0:13:37- What's in here?! - ..out of my Glasgow shop?

0:13:37 > 0:13:40- I've got lovely nylons.- Uh-huh. - One and threepence.- Wow.

0:13:40 > 0:13:42- Bargain.- And if you need the line painted on,

0:13:42 > 0:13:44I'll paint the line for you.

0:13:44 > 0:13:45- Excellent.- We've got lovely watches.

0:13:45 > 0:13:47- Oh, yeah?- Take your pick. Beautiful.

0:13:47 > 0:13:50- Oh, my God, that's a big one. - That's an amazing one.- Lovely.

0:13:50 > 0:13:52That's the biggest watch I've ever seen.

0:13:52 > 0:13:54That's what they all say. Wait till you see my clock!

0:13:57 > 0:14:00- This is incredible! - And they call it a no for sale shop.

0:14:00 > 0:14:02"Much is that?" "It's no for sale."

0:14:02 > 0:14:05- "Much is that?"- Lots not for sale? - Tam doesnae sell anything.

0:14:05 > 0:14:08I just keep the stuff that I like cos it's hard to get this stuff.

0:14:08 > 0:14:11I really like what Tam's doing here.

0:14:11 > 0:14:14He's kind of creating a museum of Glasgow

0:14:14 > 0:14:16but in a really immediate way,

0:14:16 > 0:14:19like, a granny's living room museum.

0:14:23 > 0:14:25Just like in Tam's shop,

0:14:25 > 0:14:28there's a rich history of Glasgow emerging on this wall,

0:14:28 > 0:14:31if you care to spend time looking.

0:14:31 > 0:14:35The artists' magpie approach means they've found a place for everything

0:14:35 > 0:14:37from caramel wafers and Mother's Pride bread

0:14:37 > 0:14:40to pies from the local pie shop.

0:14:40 > 0:14:42From the Barras

0:14:42 > 0:14:45to Glasgow's Bell's pottery patterns.

0:14:45 > 0:14:46And the city's famous traffic cone,

0:14:46 > 0:14:50which sits permanently on the Wellington statue in Royal Exchange Square,

0:14:50 > 0:14:53has been painted on top of everything,

0:14:53 > 0:14:56from the Tolbooth clock tower to fishes' heads.

0:14:59 > 0:15:03The artists want to reference not only buildings and objects

0:15:03 > 0:15:05but the factories and industries that produced them.

0:15:07 > 0:15:10Well, there's been a rope factory for a long time in Parkhead

0:15:10 > 0:15:12and now it's a twine factory.

0:15:12 > 0:15:15So with our paintings we often do...

0:15:15 > 0:15:18We use techniques and devices to make a change,

0:15:18 > 0:15:22like, a different style of painting or use cut-throughs.

0:15:22 > 0:15:26So we thought that by doing a rope it would make a nice contrast

0:15:26 > 0:15:29but it was also relevant because of the rope and twine factory.

0:15:31 > 0:15:34Just a street away from the mural, on Caroline Street,

0:15:34 > 0:15:37stands Henry Winning's rope factory.

0:15:37 > 0:15:40The business started from this unassuming brick warehouse

0:15:40 > 0:15:41back in 1880.

0:15:41 > 0:15:45And though these days Winning's makes string not rope,

0:15:45 > 0:15:48it's the last remaining twine factory in the UK,

0:15:48 > 0:15:51supplying demand from all over Europe.

0:15:51 > 0:15:53In the factory we make lots of different twine.

0:15:53 > 0:15:55I'd say there's about ten different kinds

0:15:55 > 0:15:57and we maybe do five different types of rayon as well.

0:15:57 > 0:16:00So there's quite a lot involved in it.

0:16:00 > 0:16:02It's not just a bit of string.

0:16:04 > 0:16:07The first day you start, we do special knots

0:16:07 > 0:16:09so what you have to do is learn your knot.

0:16:09 > 0:16:12Then as time goes on, when you're tying the knot

0:16:12 > 0:16:15you'll do it as the machine's running.

0:16:15 > 0:16:17The factory employs 32 on its shop floor,

0:16:17 > 0:16:20and most are from Parkhead and the East End.

0:16:22 > 0:16:24I've worked about 37 years altogether.

0:16:24 > 0:16:27I was 15 years when I started, straight from school.

0:16:27 > 0:16:30I didn't think I would be here that long

0:16:30 > 0:16:32but the years just passed by so I'm still here!

0:16:34 > 0:16:36My sister's always also worked in here.

0:16:36 > 0:16:38My mother's worked here.

0:16:38 > 0:16:41My son and my daughter go to college and university

0:16:41 > 0:16:42so they come in and give a wee hand

0:16:42 > 0:16:46when they're off college and university, to give a wee hand.

0:16:46 > 0:16:48All the family's worked here, yeah.

0:16:50 > 0:16:53The only factories I know that's left in the East End is this one

0:16:53 > 0:16:56and the biscuit factory over in Tollcross.

0:16:56 > 0:16:59All the rest are away and there used to be quite a lot.

0:17:01 > 0:17:02Back on the wall,

0:17:02 > 0:17:05Good Wives and Warriors are using the local rope

0:17:05 > 0:17:07to tie all the elements of the mural together.

0:17:13 > 0:17:16There's so much going on, isn't it?

0:17:16 > 0:17:19I really like that about it. The...

0:17:19 > 0:17:21- I think it's so different. - The twine factory...

0:17:21 > 0:17:24There's so many things that's from around this area.

0:17:24 > 0:17:26- It's good for our community. - What's that?

0:17:26 > 0:17:28Is it a squirrel or a ferret?

0:17:33 > 0:17:3512 days into the project,

0:17:35 > 0:17:37the artists are working on the suggestion

0:17:37 > 0:17:40to include a building extremely close to their hearts,

0:17:40 > 0:17:43without which there would be no Good Wives and Warriors.

0:17:47 > 0:17:49So the section we're working on right now

0:17:49 > 0:17:52is lifted directly from a Mackintosh design.

0:17:52 > 0:17:55For the competition we wanted to have something quite bold

0:17:55 > 0:17:59and we also really wanted to reference the art school in the painting

0:17:59 > 0:18:03because the Mac building's somewhere that's so important

0:18:03 > 0:18:05to our experience of Glasgow.

0:18:05 > 0:18:07These blocks we know specifically feature in

0:18:07 > 0:18:09the furniture in the Mackintosh building

0:18:09 > 0:18:12and also the sort of blocks and the grid reference

0:18:12 > 0:18:15is used all over the art school.

0:18:19 > 0:18:23Depicting the art school became even more important to Louise and Becky

0:18:23 > 0:18:25after an accidental fire broke out

0:18:25 > 0:18:28and destroyed perhaps the most precious part of the building,

0:18:28 > 0:18:32the wooden library and much of its contents, earlier this year.

0:18:32 > 0:18:35- Oh, I mean, we both cried. It was... - It was kind of horrendous.

0:18:35 > 0:18:37There was lots of messages going around from...

0:18:37 > 0:18:40- All of our friends.- ..various ex-graduates and friends

0:18:40 > 0:18:43and just everyone was really emotionally hit, weren't they?

0:18:43 > 0:18:46Yeah. And I think seeing those pictures of the flames, you know,

0:18:46 > 0:18:48whooshing up, that was so upsetting.

0:18:54 > 0:18:56We would have probably put references to the Art School

0:18:56 > 0:18:59into our mural anyway, but after this happened,

0:18:59 > 0:19:03we definitely knew that we wanted some of the parts of the library.

0:19:06 > 0:19:10So we put some of the lights that were in the library,

0:19:10 > 0:19:14which is this really beautiful ironwork.

0:19:14 > 0:19:17It was something that was really important to us

0:19:17 > 0:19:18and important to the city,

0:19:18 > 0:19:21so we want it to live on, in a small way, on a wall in Parkhead.

0:19:26 > 0:19:30But there's another historically important Glasgow building

0:19:30 > 0:19:33that the artists just had to include in their mural for Parkhead.

0:19:35 > 0:19:40A lot of older residents, when we spoke to them, remembered the Forge,

0:19:40 > 0:19:44which was a steel factory opened by William Beardmore.

0:19:45 > 0:19:47In the middle of the 19th century,

0:19:47 > 0:19:50Parkhead developed from a small village

0:19:50 > 0:19:53into a thriving industrial suburb at the Eastern end

0:19:53 > 0:19:55of the expanding city, largely driven

0:19:55 > 0:19:59by William Beardmore's famous Parkhead Forge.

0:19:59 > 0:20:02Today whether we speak of Beardmore's or Parkhead,

0:20:02 > 0:20:03which mean the same thing,

0:20:03 > 0:20:06we are speaking of one of the greatest industrial concerns

0:20:06 > 0:20:07in the world.

0:20:09 > 0:20:10I stayed in the Gallowgate.

0:20:10 > 0:20:14My back windows looked into the back end of the Forge.

0:20:14 > 0:20:18You could smell the Forge. You could smell the smoke

0:20:18 > 0:20:20when they were melting.

0:20:20 > 0:20:22You knew the furnaces were on, because you could hear the noise

0:20:22 > 0:20:25and you could see the black smoke going up.

0:20:25 > 0:20:28You could smell it. You were shutting your windows.

0:20:28 > 0:20:31If your windows weren't fitting too good, you'd put the bits of paper in,

0:20:31 > 0:20:33shut the window down on to the bit of paper

0:20:33 > 0:20:35so as the dust didn't come in.

0:20:35 > 0:20:38Covering an area of 25 acres,

0:20:38 > 0:20:41the Forge became the largest steelworks in Scotland.

0:20:41 > 0:20:43Davey and Norrie were some of the last to work

0:20:43 > 0:20:46within these old forge walls.

0:20:46 > 0:20:48It was like a football match coming out,

0:20:48 > 0:20:50the amount of people that were there.

0:20:50 > 0:20:53At one time they reckon there was 30,000, at one time.

0:20:53 > 0:20:58It was the place to be. It was Parkhead Forge.

0:20:58 > 0:21:01It was the working man's Mecca, if you like.

0:21:01 > 0:21:02You worked in the Forge

0:21:02 > 0:21:05or your Granda worked there.

0:21:05 > 0:21:08It was just a natural thing that you were going to work in the Forge,

0:21:08 > 0:21:09if you were a boy, that was it.

0:21:09 > 0:21:11That was it.

0:21:11 > 0:21:13It was the lifeblood of the community.

0:21:13 > 0:21:17The original Forge closed its doors in 1976

0:21:17 > 0:21:18and is now a shopping centre.

0:21:21 > 0:21:23In their tribute to the steelworks,

0:21:23 > 0:21:27Louise and Becky have included the original factory sheds,

0:21:27 > 0:21:30but the story of the Forge and its founder William Beardmore

0:21:30 > 0:21:33has also inspired another section of the mural.

0:21:34 > 0:21:36We started looking into history of the Forge

0:21:36 > 0:21:40and found out that he sponsored Shackleton in his bid

0:21:40 > 0:21:46to be first man at the Antarctic, at the South Pole.

0:21:46 > 0:21:48So we found out more about it,

0:21:48 > 0:21:51and we found out that his ship the Nimrod

0:21:51 > 0:21:55was pretty much sponsored by William Beardmore.

0:21:55 > 0:21:57So we thought it would be really nice

0:21:57 > 0:21:58to put the Nimrod in the painting.

0:21:58 > 0:22:01We thought it would be quite nice to have a ship in the bottle

0:22:01 > 0:22:04at the bottom of the Clyde, with a bit of history attached to it.

0:22:04 > 0:22:06And it had to be an Irn Bru bottle, really.

0:22:08 > 0:22:10In their final week of painting,

0:22:10 > 0:22:13Louise and Becky have come down to the ground level.

0:22:13 > 0:22:15For the last section of their mural,

0:22:15 > 0:22:18the artists have designed a riverbed under the Clyde.

0:22:19 > 0:22:22They've trawled Glasgow's past for their design,

0:22:22 > 0:22:25and the ship in the bottle is just one of many objects

0:22:25 > 0:22:28which the artists have sunk to the bottom of the river.

0:22:28 > 0:22:31It is basically going to be a mixture of the different fish

0:22:31 > 0:22:34that were suggested to us that are going to be moving

0:22:34 > 0:22:37in between underwater plants

0:22:37 > 0:22:40but also lost bits of Glasgow buildings,

0:22:40 > 0:22:43made to look a little bit like the castles

0:22:43 > 0:22:45and decorations you put in a fish tank.

0:22:49 > 0:22:51We brought loads of really big brushes

0:22:51 > 0:22:53that we haven't even looked at,

0:22:53 > 0:22:56because we've decided to do the whole painting

0:22:56 > 0:22:58in a range of really tiny brushes,

0:22:58 > 0:23:01which is possibly not the right size of brush

0:23:01 > 0:23:04to paint a three-storey building with.

0:23:05 > 0:23:08Good Wives and Warriors have just three days left

0:23:08 > 0:23:10to complete their intricate riverbed.

0:23:10 > 0:23:12Is some of this stuff references to Glasgow?

0:23:12 > 0:23:16Yeah, everything has come from something that someone's suggested.

0:23:16 > 0:23:18That's good. Really smart.

0:23:18 > 0:23:20But as they work away on the street level,

0:23:20 > 0:23:23the mural is attracting quite a bit of local interest.

0:23:23 > 0:23:25Which is your favourite bit?

0:23:25 > 0:23:31- That one near the keyhole. - Ah, cos that's the Quarry Brae logo

0:23:31 > 0:23:33for the football team.

0:23:33 > 0:23:36- Mm-hmm.- Yeah, your coach asked us to put that in.

0:23:38 > 0:23:43- Is it sort of the universe or not? - Sort of the Parkhead universe.

0:23:43 > 0:23:46- Parkhead.- Yeah. It's just lots of images and objects

0:23:46 > 0:23:52that people have suggested to us to represent Parkhead and Glasgow.

0:23:52 > 0:23:54Fortunately, with time fast running out,

0:23:54 > 0:23:56the artists receive some welcome help...

0:23:56 > 0:23:58Oh, tea!

0:23:58 > 0:23:59..and refreshments.

0:23:59 > 0:24:02Thank you very much.

0:24:02 > 0:24:04So like this?

0:24:04 > 0:24:06Yeah, just like that.

0:24:06 > 0:24:10- That's really nice. - Do it, like, here?- Uh-huh.

0:24:10 > 0:24:11WHat do you like most?

0:24:11 > 0:24:16The wee fish with the ice cream cone on its head.

0:24:16 > 0:24:18I love ice cream. I like fish.

0:24:18 > 0:24:21- WOMAN:- Do yous mind people talking to yous when you're doing it?

0:24:21 > 0:24:25- No. - GIRL:- It just takes 'em longer!

0:24:25 > 0:24:28- You do yours nice and neat. - I am!

0:24:28 > 0:24:30Do yous want to be an artist when you're older?

0:24:30 > 0:24:32- Yes, definitely! - When we grow up.

0:24:32 > 0:24:35When I grow up, I definitely want to be an artist.

0:24:35 > 0:24:37Irn Bru.

0:24:37 > 0:24:42Three Irn Brus and the wee green circles, and the flowers.

0:24:42 > 0:24:44Mucky hands.

0:24:44 > 0:24:46Yep, very mucky hands.

0:24:47 > 0:24:51It's the last day of painting, but there's one final creature

0:24:51 > 0:24:53to add to the design.

0:24:53 > 0:24:59We had the idea to use a hybrid animal,

0:24:59 > 0:25:01combining pigeons and fish,

0:25:01 > 0:25:03because the whole bottom part of the painting is the Clyde,

0:25:03 > 0:25:05then at the top we've got the archway

0:25:05 > 0:25:08and we had the dookits and the doos.

0:25:08 > 0:25:13So we did a few drawings of these... We're calling them Doofish.

0:25:13 > 0:25:17They had to be one of the last things that we painted,

0:25:17 > 0:25:21because we had to paint the coloured layer on top of everything else.

0:25:21 > 0:25:23So we needed to know where to put them,

0:25:23 > 0:25:27but we could only judge that after everything else had been finished.

0:25:34 > 0:25:38Michelangelo has came to the East End of Glasgow.

0:25:38 > 0:25:41We're very delighted and very proud, aren't we, Billy?

0:25:41 > 0:25:43Oh, it's absolutely breathtaking.

0:25:43 > 0:25:47It'll be here long after the memory of the Commonwealth Games.

0:25:51 > 0:25:55This is pretty much the last bit of painting.

0:25:58 > 0:26:02Louise was just saying it feels like the last day of school.

0:26:02 > 0:26:06I think I might wait and just do his eye as the very last touch.

0:26:14 > 0:26:17With the painting finally complete,

0:26:17 > 0:26:21the scaffolding comes down and the artists get their first proper look

0:26:21 > 0:26:22at the whole mural.

0:26:26 > 0:26:28I have to stop myself looking for mistakes, though.

0:26:28 > 0:26:30- I can see mistakes.- Yeah, me too.

0:26:32 > 0:26:35I think those two doofish are in the wrong place.

0:26:35 > 0:26:37- No, I think they're OK. - You think they're OK? OK.

0:26:37 > 0:26:40- I think it's really good.- It looks like how it's supposed to look.

0:26:40 > 0:26:44It looks like we're slightly insane that we've done that amount of work.

0:26:44 > 0:26:46Stacy, there's food!

0:26:48 > 0:26:49There's food!

0:26:52 > 0:26:54Hello, everyone.

0:26:54 > 0:26:56This painting was always meant to be

0:26:56 > 0:26:58more about the people of Parkhead than us,

0:26:58 > 0:27:01so everything here is a suggestion that one of you,

0:27:01 > 0:27:05all of you have given to us, we've put it in there.

0:27:05 > 0:27:07Although we feel like we've...

0:27:07 > 0:27:08Obviously it's our style and our painting,

0:27:08 > 0:27:13it's very much your painting. We hope that you're proud of it.

0:27:13 > 0:27:14We've had such a good time.

0:27:14 > 0:27:16Just thank you, really, is all we want to say.

0:27:16 > 0:27:17APPLAUSE

0:27:17 > 0:27:20But more importantly, what do the locals think?

0:27:20 > 0:27:21That is very nice.

0:27:21 > 0:27:23I'm trying to figure out where does Benmore come into it.

0:27:23 > 0:27:26It's been good. Really good. Watching it every day.

0:27:26 > 0:27:32We could se a big improvement, different colours and all that.

0:27:32 > 0:27:36- Every gable end should have one. - Every gable end should have one.

0:27:36 > 0:27:39Every time you look at it, you see something else.

0:27:39 > 0:27:41An Irn Bru bottle down the bottom.

0:27:41 > 0:27:46I like the whole lot, what they've done.

0:27:46 > 0:27:49It's really, really lovely.

0:27:49 > 0:27:53It looks really detailed. Not all the fish are the same.

0:27:53 > 0:27:56We've watched it every day since it started.

0:27:56 > 0:28:01Watched it getting bigger and bigger. It's lovely.

0:28:01 > 0:28:02We wanted it to have longevity,

0:28:02 > 0:28:05so that it would give people something different

0:28:05 > 0:28:07every time they looked at it. If they could keep coming back to it

0:28:07 > 0:28:09and finding new things and exploring it...

0:28:09 > 0:28:11- It's not just one line.- Yeah.

0:28:11 > 0:28:14It's many lines that people can pick up on.

0:28:14 > 0:28:16Good. It's very nice, really.

0:28:18 > 0:28:20Are we not doing nothing with the middle?