First-of-its-kind Yoruba heritage mural unveiled in Peckham
A first-of-its-kind mural representing Yoruba heritage was unveiled in Southwark on Saturday.
The giant mural in Peckham Square, Peckham High Street, has been created as part of a project by the not-for-profit, CultureTree.
The organisations chief executive, Gbemisola Isimi, unveiled the mural alongside the Mayor of Southwark, Michael Situ.
CultureTree received funding from the Mayor of London’s Untold Stories fund in May last year to tell the story of the Yoruba community in Southwark – a largely untold history of how one of the three largest Nigerian ethnic groups has contributed to the area.
In a UK first, six interactive digital Yoruba heritage walking trails and a pop-up Yoruba community space have also been set up across the borough.
The mural in Peckham Square has a QR code which takes visitors to an online oral history archive, where they can hear interviews from Yoruba people in the area.
Muralist Polly Alakija was commissioned to work with Southwark school children, residents and community groups as well as a group of Nigerian-British artists to create the mural.
Ms Isimi said: “This project has been a massive team effort from the very start, from the support of all our stakeholders to the tenacity of the team of Artists who worked to bring the vision to life.
“I’m excited for everyone to see the mural and join the Yoruba Heritage Walking Trails across Southwark.”
Pictured top: Gbemisola Isimi infront of the mural in Peckham Square (Picture: Thabo Jaiyesimi)