Togetherness.
Mural. Kirklees. 2023

Commissioned by Kirklees Council, the created artwork in and around Huddersfield and Dewsbury (Yorkshire). Centring on the importance of the two-meter distancing rule, Benaiah’s graphic sensibility articulates the importance of both social welfare and community spirit with a powerfully optimistic colour palette. Large-scale type and figurative depictions are linked through his widely known style of continuous line drawings uniting this new multi-layered artwork.

Key aspects to the campaign are Respect, Community, Kindness, Caring and Togetherness mirroring the personal values of the artist himself. Using a team of local artists, Benaiah paid mind to specifically focus on representing the rich talent within his Huddersfield community by making up his core team with 5 Black artists.

The artwork has been applied across two main formats, hand painted street-side hoardings leading into Huddersfield town centre and printed vinyls for vacant shop windows in Dewsbury town centre – meaning this important campaign is visible to the whole community. A collection of characters from the Togetherness Mural are also available as soft enamel pins. The resulting artwork regenerates and uplifts an area through a simple but clear message, a positive articulation of community spirit in a challenging time.

Credits:
Lead artist – Benaiah Matheson
Artists – Matthew Francis, Desiree Shaw, Javan Von-Rollock, Thomas Pandé III
Photography – Kano Kane

Special mention – Huddersfield Decorators Merchants, Prep by LeShaun Pryce, Mrs Greens Kitchen, Tom O’D and Sean McCaffery.