A Glasgow artist who painted on a soon-to-be-demolished building is 'humbled' that the community is after professional pictures of the murals.
Stephen Machin, aka Mack Colours, decided to liven up the Shawbridge Arcade at the beginning of the year with colourful artwork.
He knew that the building was due to be demolished near the end of 2022, but hoped that the community would appreciate the temporary street art.
Now, Wheatley Homes Glasgow, who bought the site with the intent to build flats on it, decided to photograph the murals and display them in their local office.
This comes after an overwhelming response from the community, which the 33-year-old also noticed, as some passers-by even gave him money.
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He said: "It’s obviously very humbling to know that my art went down so well to have photos done.
"So many people come to park their cars here just to go into the park but this made them stay a wee bit longer and brought a wee bit of life back to the derelict building.
“Every time I go down to paint or to have a look at who else painted, there are always people walking with children. When I started painting, that was not the case.
“It has really changed. Nearly every time I pass, I see a photographer as well and sometimes I even say hi.
“It’s nice to just have the community recognise and connect with the artwork, instead of seeing it as vandalism, especially because a lot of the residents are older.
“I have never had any complaints, the community were right behind me. In fact, when I started it, some people were tipping me.
“I think I made about £67, which I donated because I didn’t feel like I needed to take anything away from it."
The Glasgow Times understands that Wheatley Homes Glasgow is also considering commissioning Stephen in the future to create a mural in the newly-built building, next year.
The Shawland artist, who already has a few ideas, said: "I am hoping to have design consultations with Wheatley in the future.
"My wish would be to do a survey in the area to see what the people would like to see, and paint that.
“I know it will be great for the wider area, but the people living there will need to look at it every day.
“It has to be something they either connect with or love to see."
The current paintings depict animals and flowers, which are the artist's favourite objects to paint.
He also recently applied for a grant which would allow him to do some free work for businesses nearby, who have been so supportive of his art.
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A Wheatley Homes Glasgow spokesperson said: “We’re always keen to listen to the views of tenants and local residents to help us shape the regeneration plans for the community.
“A number of tenants have asked if we can photograph some of the street art at the Shawbridge Arcade.
“We’ll work with the artists to make digital copies which we’ll make available to any local resident.
“Once the regeneration of Shawbridge Arcade is complete, we’d also love to include the artwork, with the artist’s permission, within our local office.”
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