The power of murals

Murals, along with other street art, have become increasingly popular around the world in recent years, due in part to omnipresent cell-phone cameras and the use of social media to share the images. Birmingham is no exception.

A list at bhamwiki.com includes about 50 local murals, many of them large and impressive.

Artist Marcus Fetch, who’s worked on more than 40 murals in the area, told Iron City Ink recently there’s been “a major ramp up” in the number of murals in Birmingham the last three years.

The murals “add a lot of vibrancy and character to the city,” Fetch said.

He also believes murals can change the perception of a run-down neighborhood and draw new people and activity.

Fetch, who founded Redemptive Cycle, said that painting the walls in the alley behind the shop in the 1300 block of Second Avenue North helped change the feel of that area.

“I fell in love with the power that murals have to activate any area and bring people to it,” Fetch said.

Shane B., who recently created a mural called “Freezing Time” in an alley in Five Points South, agrees that murals have a transformative power.

“I like to find dead spaces that people kind of forgot about, spaces that people don’t find appealing at all,” he said. “It gives the entire area a whole new life.”

The trend toward street art and murals in the Magic City is similar to what is happening in other cities, Fetch said.

New people moving into the City Center have also had an impact on the popularity of murals.

“People moving into downtown want color and expression and art, and it’s really exciting,” Fetch said.

Meghan McCollum is the executive director of Blank Space Bham, a nonprofit that has done about 15 murals so far with several more in the planning and design phase.

She likes murals because of their ability to “leave an impact,” McCollum said. 

“Whether it be visually or socioeconomically, murals have reach,” she said.

“Murals not only physically intervene into or enhance spaces as a pieces of art, but they also have the ability to send messages,” McCollum said.

Fetch said that he feels “impressed” every time he sees a mural. “It’s big and bold and it's out there for the public to see,” he said.

The number of murals in the city will likely increase, Fetch said. 

“The next two to three years, we will double the number of murals in town for sure — maybe triple,” he said.

McCollum agrees that the number of murals in Birmingham will continue to grow. 

“Birmingham has too much left to say,” she said.

“We’re defining our city by painting it,” Fetch said.