A huge mural created using recycled materials has been unveiled in Stockport town centre, becoming the largest recycled plastic bottle cap mural ever to be showcased in the UK.
Masterminded by local artist, Caitlin Atherton, co-owner of local recycling community benefit society, Plastic Shed, the idea of a bottle cap mural has been in the works for many years, and with the support of Merseyway Shopping Centre, has become an impressive reality, covering an 18M x 4M wall opposite the Air Raid Shelters.
Fully funded by the UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF), the handcrafted mural has been fitted together using 100% recycled plastic boards and features approximately 80,000 plastic lids, all collectedand donated by the local community over the past fivemonths, including local schools, colleges, nursing homes, cafes, offices, gyms, churches, restaurants, charities, and youth groups.
There has also been an immense amount of support from local businesses, all providing bottle cap collection points across Stockport and Greater Manchester, including Patagonia and Lush in Manchester city centre, Lentil and Lather in Marple, The One Project in Macclesfield, St Mary’s Church in Partington and The Good Life, Hillgate Cakery and Chambers Skate Shop in Stockport town centre and more.
Quickly becoming a must-see mural in the heart of the town, the showstopping artwork was inspired by the ideas of the people of Stockport, who provided recommendations via a call-out to local schools and across social media. With most public recommendations involving the environment, the final piece highlights endangered and protected wildlife in Stockport, whilst celebrating nature and local landmarks.
Caitlin Atherton said “I’ve had the idea of a bottle cap mural for many years now and it’s so exciting to finally see my vision come to life. I really have been overwhelmed by the level of support I have received in creating this piece and I’d like to give a special thank you to the members of the public who collected well over 80,000 bottle lids and to all the incredible businesses involved – the work people have put into thishas really been amazing.”
“I also have to give a special mention to Optimaxx via Stockport Wickes who donated over 150,000 screws. With their donation, we were able to use a large chunk of our budget on 100% recycled plastic boards, meaning we were able to reuse an additional 891KG of plastic waste.”
“From the collection process and design submissions to each member of the public who came along to one of our workshops to help clean and fit the caps onto the mural, this truly has been a public work of art, where everyone has helped me not only achieve my dream piece, but we’ve created something even bigger than I imagined, becoming the biggest plastic bottle mural ever to be seen in the UK!”
Victoria Nichol, Centre Manager at Merseyway Shopping Centre said “Merseyway is dedicated to supporting the ideas and creativity of our tenants and it truly is an honour for us to have this fabulous mural showcased at our centre. The work Caitlin has put into this piece has been phenomenal and we’d like to encourage everyone to come down to Merseyway and see for yourself just how impactful this mural really is.”
The bottle cap mural was officially showcased at the Town of Culture Weekender, which last weekend welcomed thousands of people into Stockport celebrating the end of the Town of Culture year with over 50 events and festivities at 25 locations.
