Dove Street Urban Gallery Launches

 Central Ward Councillors welcome major CIL investment into resident-led public art, neighbourhood pride and community-led place-shaping.

Central Ward Councillors Sibusiso Tshabalala and Ani Townsend are pleased to announce that Dove Street’s new Urban Gallery will go live on 13 July, marking the next stage of a major resident-led public art project in Kingsdown.

The project has secured £50,000 in Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) funding to support the creation of ten large-scale murals across the Dove Street estate. The investment was approved through Area Committee 4 and will help transform high-visibility areas that have experienced tagging, environmental neglect and a lack of investment.

Led by Dove Street Community Forum and local residents, the project is rooted in community walks, conversations and lived experience. It aims to turn Dove Street into an open air art gallery, a place people choose to visit, not overlook.

The Forum has now announced the artists who will help bring this vision to life, including some of Bristol’s most respected and internationally recognised muralists. Artists include Inkie, Hazard One, Sepr, Silent Hobo, Marta Zubieta, Asmaa Jama, Felix Braun, Juno Frenzel, Zase, Dave Bain, Sophie Higgins Wheeler, Eduard Rice, Fowsachi and Mike Stuart.

Among the artists, Tom “Inkie” Bingle is recognised as a major figure in Bristol’s street art movement, while Hazard One, Sepr, Silent Hobo, Zase and others bring deep roots in Bristol’s street art culture. The project also includes resident artists, including Fowsachi and Mike Stuart, ensuring the work is not only brought to Dove Street, but also comes from within the community itself.

Residents Changing the Narrative

Victoria and Mike, residents involved in the project, said,

“Dove Street is often described as forgotten tucked behind Stokes Croft, Broadmead and the BRI. For years, film crews have used our estate as a backdrop for urban deprivation. Yes, we face challenges, from environmental neglect to antisocial behaviour. But we also have a strong, diverse community determined to change the narrative.”

When we worked together on the mural, people of all ages, faiths and backgrounds came together with a shared purpose: to make our area more beautiful. It built trust, sparked new friendships and turned a tagged, crumbling wall into something colourful and joyful. There was laughter, pride and a real sense of ownership.

 

Now street art tours stop here on their way to see the Banksy at the top of the hill. The mural has made the estate feel safer and more welcoming.

“We’re thrilled our funding bid was successful. It means we can create bigger, more ambitious artworks and position Dove Street as an outdoor gallery somewhere people choose to visit, not overlook. We want to move in the opposite direction of broken window syndrome and build a neighbourhood we’re proud to call home.”

Leadership Through Resident-Led Place-Shaping

Councillor Sibusiso Tshabalala, Central Ward Councillor, who has worked closely with Kingsdown residents to support resident-led improvements, said “This project shows what happens when residents are trusted as co-creators of change.

My role as a councillor is not simply to support funding applications, but to help unlock the power, creativity and leadership that already exists within our communities. Dove Street is about more than murals. It is about dignity, belonging, safety and long-term neighbourhood pride. When residents are given the tools, space and support to shape their own environment, public spaces become shared assets rather than neglected corners.

Local people do not lack ideas; too often they lack access. By helping connect residents to CIL funding and wider council processes, we can make sure development contributes directly to community wellbeing. This is the type of leadership I believe in resident-led, partnership-based and rooted in shared ownership. Dove Street shows what is possible when communities are trusted to lead.”

Culture, Pride and Community Ownership

Councillor Ani Townsend, Central Ward Councillor, said “Culture is not a luxury, it is part of how communities build pride, belonging and shared identity. By embedding creativity into our neighbourhoods, we can create inclusive, vibrant and healthy places that are rooted in the communities they serve.

Dove Street is a brilliant example of how public art can support regeneration from the ground up, led by residents who know their area and want to shape its future.”

The Dove Street Urban Gallery goes live on 13 July. Residents and visitors can find out more about the artists and the project through Dove Street Community Forum, for more info click here.