The second mural to contribute to the Elevation wall mural festival is by the artist KMG, a Scottish street artist from Aberdeen, who has been active for over 20 years. She studied Fine Art and Painting at the prestigious Grays School of Art, Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen. Her work typically draws on elements of folklore and mythology with bold colours and graphic designs and a special relevance to the area. The imagery has heraldic, illustrated manuscript graphics which combine to create a playful, witty, cartoon like works of real beauty and interest.
Her piece ‘Oceanus’ for North Shields Elevation mural festival is on the 55° Fisheries building, situated at the bottom of the Tanners Bank, follows KMG’s signature mythological theme. She carried out extensive research prior to commencing designing the work to ensure the piece is relevant to the area. Oceanus was a Titan and the father of the river gods and the river that encircled the ancient world. The relevance to the River Tyne, especially North Shields and its place in the local mythology was the archeological discovery of altars in Newcastle by the Swing Bridge and dedicated to the water gods Neptune and Oceanus. Roman in origin and dedicated by Emperor Hadrian, it shows just how important The Tyne was to the Romans. Neptune ruled the freshwater whilst Oceanus had dominion over the saltwater tidal areas such as the River Tyne, particularly North Shields and the Mouth of the Tyne. Oceanus is often depicted as being half fish, with the top half being half male and his head has bull horns. Typical with her dry Scottish wit here, Oceanus is neither male or female and therefore open to discussion and interpretation.
She strongly believes in Art is for all and her choice of street art places her work fully in the public gaze. She explained the value of murals to a community, as well as the obvious brightening of a dull, neglected environment and developing tourism. It also encourages public discussion and engagement, adding to that sense of community and local pride. This was demonstrated throughout the project. The interest and engagement from passersby and many visitors and KMG’s willingness to explain and engage that the work overran by a full day was universally positive. Street art is very much at the forefront of community development as people come to realize the considerable value to the end that mural artists are no longer clandestine outsiders at risk of arrest but valued as contributors to vibrant urban Landscapes. It’s a huge contribution to the art and visual development and landscape of North Shields.
Elevation is a community arts charity founded by local residents and powered by volunteers. To mark the town’s 800th anniversary, the Elevation wall mural festival has brought together eight talented artists to create a series of large-scale public artworks over the summer of 2025. Selected by a panel of community members, the artists were set the challenge of capturing the spirit of North Shields. Find out more about the Elevation North Shields 800 Mural Trail.
Elevation has been documented and promoted in collaboration with I Love North Shields (www.ilovenorthshields.com) and Sira Studio (www.sirastudio.com).
Photographs by Wayne Bordoli Photography (Facebook)
More articles in this series:
Wall Murals are Coming to North Shields!
Painting the Town: Elevation Mural Festival Update
Other murals in the Elevation North Shields 800 Mural Trail:
The Siren – Prefab77 – Albion Road
The Chase – Nina Valkhoff – Norfolk Street
North Shields No4 – Anthony Downie – Trevor Terrace
I Beg That Sound – Ricky Also – Brandling Terrace
The Spirit of Shields – Mark One87 – North Shields Football Club
