For urban fly-fishers exploring the edgelands of our towns and cities, graffiti is a common sight. Old brick arches, hard concrete river banks and derelict factory walls offer almost everything a spraycan kid could ask for: an endless blank(ish) canvas, and plenty of slightly sinister seclusion to wait for the muse to strike.
Still, not everyone appreciates apparently random layers of competing territorial tags. So the Rea Brook in Shrewbury has seen a local attempt to replace questionable squiggles (discuss!) with something a little different, as acclaimed street artist and ornithologist Matt Sewell was invited to make his own mark on some of the valley’s old infrastructure last year.
Fieldfares, redwings, deer, foxes, badgers and other birds and mammals are all represented on this railway underpass, creating a new urban artwork which featured on Countryfile and recently caught the eye of Urbantrout correspondent Spencer Clayton on one of his regular forays to fish the Brook.
We like it… a lot…
Have you spotted any really striking graffiti on your urban fishing adventures? Send us a pic, and we’ll make a gallery sometime.
(Photo: Spencer Clayton)
