It is being painted at the entrance to the stadiumA huge mural celebrating Bristol City's history is taking shape at the entrance to the Dolman Stand at Ashton Gate, painted by Bristol street art legends Inkie and Jody (pictured with the mural nearly half completed)A huge mural celebrating Bristol City’s history is taking shape at the entrance to the Dolman Stand at Ashton Gate, painted by Bristol street art legends Inkie and Jody (pictured with the mural nearly half completed)(Image: Bristol Post)

A mission to fill South Bristol with huge murals that celebrate the history of Bristol City is about to unveil its biggest one yet – with two of the biggest names in street art in the city up the cherry picker with the spray cans. Art4Fans is an independent fans group that raises funds to pay for huge murals to be created, and is already responsible for three murals on the sides of buildings near the stadium.

Now, a new and even bigger mural is taking shape, with street art legends Inkie and Jody getting involved for the first time. The new mural is so big it’s having to be done in two halves, and this week saw work on the second half get started as the artists returned after dark to project the image onto the wall.

The mural is being created on the side of a house on Ashton Road, at the Dolman Stand entrance to Ashton Gate Stadium. “This latest mural celebrates highlights from across the years and features eight of the football club’s characters, beginning in the 1909, with the appearance of Bristol City in the FA Cup Final against Manchester United,” an Art4Fans spokesperson said.

“From there it goes forward through the years highlighting memorable characters who played their part,” they added. “The project is funded by supporters and we celebrate the supporters’ own history via our website.”

Art4Fans described itself as a ‘collaboration of people with an interest in celebrating individuals who have excelled in a particular field’. It’s not necessarily Bristol City, nor is it confined to football. The idea began when Neil Palmer, the founder of the Bristol City Former Players’ Association, took a trip to Liverpool.

Murals around football stadiums have become something of a phenomenon, particularly since Covid, with famous murals popping up around Liverpool’s Anfield Stadium, Manchester United’s Old Trafford and the home of Arsenal in north London.

Neil said he was inspired by seeing the murals of Liverpool legends and current players around Anfield, and wanted to do something similar in Bristol. “What he saw there in murals around the streets of Anfield was inspirational and during coffee we shared some ideas and quickly became excited to join forces to make this happen,” an Art4Fans spokesperson said. “The concept of our Art creations involve celebrating the contributor as much as the personality,” they added.

So far, three murals have been completed – all on the gable ends of buildings along Ashton Road, opposite Greville Smyth Park and on the approach to the stadium from North Street. The first was a giant mural celebrating local lad Chris Garland – who grew up in the flats overlooking the stadium and went on to play for Bristol City in the First Division. Others have followed celebrating six famous strikers who’ve played for Bristol City, and one that commemorates the love for two of Bristol City’s captains – Geoff Merrick and Louis Carey.

READ MORE: ‘Rock hard football’ as legends watch the most important school match in BristolREAD MORE: The story behind how Bristol City icon Chris Garland became immortalised on the side of a pub

The Chris Garland mural was unveiled back in October 2023, with members of the Garland family in attendance, along with former teammates such as Geoff Merrick and Paul Cheesley – celebrating his 70th birthday – and supporters. The curtain came down on the mural, envisaged by Palmer and painted so evocatively by street artist Spike Clark, as Neil Palmer explained how he was inspired to start the initiative.

“Anfield was a little bit like Bedminster, or what it used to be – that working class sort of area, and I was absolutely blown away by the murals of Ian St John, Ian Rush, John Barnes, Bill Shankly, Bob Paisley – all through the eras, and it was everywhere,” Palmer told Bristol Live at the time.

“I just thought it was fantastic. So I crossed Stanley Park to Everton and was amazed it was exactly the same there where you have Colin Harvey, Alan Ball, Howard Kendall, people like that.

A huge mural celebrating Bristol City’s history is taking shape at the entrance to the Dolman Stand at Ashton Gate, painted by Bristol street art legends Inkie and Jody (pictured with the mural nearly half completed)(Image: Bristol Post)

“And on the way back I remember thinking, ‘I would love it if we could do this in Bristol’ and I think that the only thing stopping it was that sometimes Bristol can be a bit of people going, ‘well, we can’t have that in Bristol’, just that sense of apathy and ‘that can’t happen’, but I thought I’m not going to be put off. These players are as important to City fans as those Liverpool players were in that part of their city.

“Bedminster and Ashton has some fantastic art but I’ve always been conscious that none of it has had any connection with the football club. I just thought it’s about bringing the club a little bit more in touch with the fans and it being very much a supporter thing.”

The new Art4Fans mural at the Dolman entrance will be unveiled officially on August 7, in time for the first home game of the new season.