A massive mural of Marcus Rashford MBE has appeared in Withington

Work is in progress on a giant portrait of Marcus Rashford MBE in Withington.

Many people don’t know that Marcus grew up in Withington and played for Fletcher Moss Rangers FC before moving to Wythenshawe – where people best know he’s from.

The man pictured on the ladder is, of course, artist AkseP19 – the man behind some of the most famous street art in Manchester.

 

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It’s gonna be a long week…#akse #p19 #graffiti #art #streetart #manchester

A post shared by Akse (P19 Crew) (@akse_p19) on Nov 3, 2020 at 3:52am PST

Commissioned by Withington Walls, whose mission is to create ‘vibrant public art as a catalyst for change’, the street art project aims to improve the public realm by commissioning and delivering quality street art to the shutters and walls in the village.

The project is run by volunteers and is funded by public donations and business support. All donations to the project are gratefully received.

“This is not a coincidence that this mural was painted on Coffee House Café on Copson Street, near where Marcus used to live,” says Akse P19.

 

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A post shared by Akse (P19 Crew) (@akse_p19) on Nov 6, 2020 at 9:33am PST

Over the years, Akse (pronounced Axe) has gained a huge amount of attention online with his hyperrealistic freehand murals of pop culture icons such as David Bowie, Tony Wilson, Prince, Liam Gallagher and Game of Thrones’ Arya Stark.

Many of his pieces have gone viral on social media, with snap-happy locals and tourists alike rushing to get a shot of his latest creation with which to update their Instagram feeds – a trend that doesn’t look set to change any time soon, despite his preference for anonymity.

The artwork is based on an original photograph by local photographer, Danny Cheetham.

“I hope this mural will inspire the local community as Marcus has inspired the whole nation with his campaign to fight child food poverty.”

The self-taught French Vietnamese artist has been in the street art world for a long time. He’s been painting since 1992, joining Pest’s P19 crew in 1993 and moving to Manchester in 1997, where he has lived ever since with his family.