Stars of valley’s town honoured in stunning new mural

A stunning mural has appeared in a valley’s town honouring some of its notable sons and daughters.

Originally Hong Kong Alley in Merthyr was the home of boxing artwork in tribute to two of the town’s legendary boxers.

However, the original portraits of Howard Winstone and Johnny Owen were stolen in 2012.

Since then the underpass has fallen into disrepair – until now.

Leading Welsh street artist Tee2Sugars, who is from the town, and a team of artists have worked tirelessly to give Hong Kong Alley a stunning makeover.

Tee said: “Working with Merthyr council, we wanted to bring a bit of colour to this very bleak looking alleyway.

“With new portraits of Laura Ashley, Julian Macdonald, Howard Winstone, Eddie Thomas and Johnny Owen, hopefully this time the artwork will stand the test of time, and people stop using the walkway as a public toilet.”

It’s been a busy time for Tee2Sugars who recently unveiled a beautiful mural of ’80s electro pioneer Steve Strange in Porthcawl.

The Welsh clubland trailblazer who was one of the catalysts for the New Romantic movement in the 1980s, came to prominence thanks to his pioneering London club The Blitz and achieved musical stardom with his electro outfit Visage.

Sadly, Steve died 10 years ago, aged 55. His funeral in Porthcawl was attended by many pop stars who knew and loved him – including Boy George and Spandau Ballet.

The mural is situated at 32 John Street in the seaside town. It features lyrics from Visage’s signature hit Fade To Grey.

It was commissioned by Steve’s lifelong friend Amanda Lloyd who wanted the town to honour one of their famous sons.

Posting images of the mural on his social media pages, Tee wrote:

“Steve Strange 80’s icon.
Born in Newbrigde
Made in London
Rested in Porthcawl
This project started 2 years ago. Amanda Lloyd (owner of the building) wanted the mural at the Picton. Then after a few months I was ready to paint the mural and sadly lost Amanda’s information and couldn’t make contact with her to progress.
So after a long wait (1 year) Amanda messaged to find out when I was starting, and that the plan had changed and there was a new location on the horizon at 32 John street in Porthcawl.
The building needed some much TLC. The mural started on 6th November and finish on 11th March.
Where Steve Strange will be for the foreseeable future.
Thanks to all the people of Porthcawl for all the kind comments.”

The street is renowned for his art which has appeared around South Wales.

His artwork created for the National Eisteddfod staged in Ynysangharad Park last year was acclaimed by many.

Located on a corner building on Mill Street it celebrates the Eisteddfod being held in the Valleys. It features a father and daughter surrounded by iconic symbols from both the Valleys and Wales.

Commissioned by the National Eisteddfod, the artist said he wanted to create a piece that celebrated the people of Rhondda Cynon Taf and the different generations “passing the torch down”.

The mural may show a man and his daughter, but Tee (real name Tom Llewellyn) revealed that the artwork was based on a photo he took of his wife and daughter, which he then edited to create his stunning artwork.

Posting on his Facebook page, Tee said of the artwork: “A Father and Daughter intertwined with the landscape of Wales and the Valleys.
“Representing the resilience of the Welsh people and the mining heritage.
“This artwork is adapted from four poems to create this mural.
“The father and daughter figure is to signify the generations of Welsh people.”

The painting shows the landscape of the Valleys and the River Taff, as well as local landmarks including Castell Coch and the Rhondda Heritage Park, alongside well known Welsh symbols – the daffodil and dragon.