A council basketball court in central Brixton is being upgraded in partnership with adidas Originals and Foot Locker to feature a new mural produced by a local art creative collective with the aim of inspiring young people from the area.
The mural by Last Night in Paris (LNiP) will be on display at the Canterbury Gardens estate basketball court alongside Brixton Station Road.
The court will also be fully upgraded to match the artwork, and the court will be more user friendly once the project, which was planned pre-lockdown, finishes in mid-July.
Local crew LNiP is a collective of musicians, artists, fashion designers and tattoo artists who live in Brixton and surrounding areas. Their mural is inspired by the area’s people and culture.
Estate residents on the were invited to comment on the plan and their feedback taken into account.
Local councillor Donatus Anyanwu, who is also Lambeth council cabinet member for the voluntary sector and leisure, said: “Lambeth is full of creative and inspiring young people, so I’m delighted they were able to take part in this project.
“Once finished this basketball court will look brilliant and I’m sure it will be a huge draw for our young people.”
The council said the new hard court surface area will be professionally jet washed and the floor will then be painted in a long lasting, non-acrylic, non-slip paint – including the court line markings.
New basketball backboards and hoops will be installed, and current goal frames will be rubbed down and repainted in a colour scheme to match the rest of the court.
The Brixton project was chosen by the sportswear firms as part of the adidas Originals “Change is a Team Sport” to celebrate the adidas Superstar’s 50th anniversary.
A second site in Paris has undergone a similar transformation.
