Kurt Cobain mural unveiled in Manchester
To raise support for UK mental health support service, Shout 85258
A mural of late Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain has been unveiled in Manchester.
Created to mark the 30th anniversary of Kurt Cobain’s death in April, street artist Akse P19 finished work on the mural on the side of music venue The Bread Shed over the weekend.
Based on a photograph by Mark Webb, the Kurt Cobain mural is the idea of Manchester music and mental health social enterprise, Headstock, who commissioned previous Akse P19 murals of Joy Division’s Ian Curtis in Manchester and The Prodigy’s Keith Flint in Hackney, London.
Just like the previous two Akse P19 Headstock murals, the Kurt Cobain painting is being created to raise awareness of UK mental health support service, Shout 85258.
Sharing a photo of the finished mural, Akse P19 wrote: “I have finally completed the Kurt Cobain mural based on the iconic photo by Mark Webb / Avalon. The mural was curated by @headstockuk in support of mental health text message support service @giveusashoutinsta 8528 to commemorate Kurt Cobain’s life and musical legacy, while aiming to prevent further tragedies from happening.
“Nirvana played 2 gigs in Manchester not far from the site of the mural: the first at Manchester Polytechnic Students Union on Oxford road in 1989, and the second at the Academy in 1991.”
The mural was made possible thanks to a Crowdfunding campaigns. There are still a number of A4 limited edition prints of the mural to those who pledge £50, here.
Other artists Akse P19 has created murals of include Prince, Amy Winehouse, David Bowie, The Buzzcocks’ Pete Shelley, Jimi Hendrix and Marvin Gaye.
Rock stars honoured with murals:
Malcolm Young
Created by anonymous Australian artist Lushsux, this sublime mural of Malcolm Young is located on AC/DC Lane in Melbourne. It was unveiled shortly after the fabled guitarist's death in November 2017.
Malcolm Young
Lushsux's second Malcolm Young mural on AC/DC Lane in Melbourne featuring angel wings and devil horns. The quote reads: "C'mon Saint Peter. How many bloody times are you gonna make me play Hell's Bells before you let me through the gates mate?"
Eddie Van Halen
Created by Los Angeles artist Robert Vargas, the gargantuan Long Live The King mural of Eddie Van Halen measures more than five metres high and 32 metres wide and is located on the outside wall of the world-famous Guitar Centre store in Hollywood, California. It was unveiled on 26th January 2021 to mark what would have been Van Halen's 66th birthday.
Bob Dylan
Created by Brazilian artist Eduardo Kobra, this astonishing Bob Dylan mural called The Times They Are A-Changin was unveiled in September 2015. Depicting three photo-realistic images of Bob Dylan from different eras, the mural features kaleidoscopic colours and patterns throughout.
Joey Ramone
Painted by artists Solus and John CRASH Matos, this Joey Ramone mural on Bleecker at the Bowery in New York City was unveiled in September 2015. Featuring Joey Ramone sporting boxing gloves, the mural was created to mark the 40th anniversary of The Ramones' first gig at legendary venue CBGB. The mural was painted over in August 2017.
Debbie Harry and Blondie
In August 2017, the Joey Ramone mural in New York was painted over by esteemed graffiti mastermind Shepard Fairey who created this impressive Debbie Harry and Blondie mural in homage to the legendary now-closed CBGB club.
Black Sabbath
Celebrating the 50th anniversary of the heavy metal pioneers, a new Black Sabbath mural was unveiled in Digbeth, Birmingham in September 2019 as part of High Vis Street Culture Festival by artist N4T4.
Lou Reed
This astonishingly life-like mosaic mural of Lou Reed was created by late photorealist artist Chuck Close in 2017. It's located at the Second Avenue Subway in Brooklyn, New York.
Ringo Starr
Painted by Liverpool artist John Culshaw, this spectacular Ringo Starr mural adorns the facade wall of The Empress Pub in Toxteth. Unveiled in March 2022, the mural is located near to Starr's humble childhood home.
David Bowie
Painted by Australian street artist Jimmy Cochra in 2013, the David Bowie 'Aladdin Sane' mural in Brixton became a focal point for mourners upon his death in January 2016.
Joe Strummer
Once located on the corner of Blenheim Crescent and Portobello road in Notting Hill, London, this Joe Strummer mural was unveiled in 2015 but was sadly demolished three years later when the adjacent shop was refurbished.
Prince
Manchester street artist Akse P19 created this Prince mural in the Northern Quarter in 2016 just a few weeks after the music legend's death.
Leonard Cohen
On the 1st anniversary of Leonard Cohen's death in November 2017 a vast 1,000 square metres mural of the singer was unveiled in downtown Montreal. Led by local artist Gene Pendon and internationally renowned American street portrait artist El Mac, Tower of Songs took 2 muralists, 13 assistant artists, 240 cans of paint and thousands of hours of work to replicate a photograph taken by his daughter, Lorca Cohen.
Muddy Waters
Eduardo Kobra's 'Muddy Waters Tribute' mural in downtown Chicago, Illinois. Kobra also created the astonishing Bob Dylan mural called The Times They Are A-Changin.
Keith Flint
Artist Akse P19 created this mural of late Prodigy icon Keith Flint in Hackney, London ahead of World Suicide Prevention Day 2021. The artwork was made to raise awareness of mental health text support service Shout85258
Mick Ronson
Late-great David Bowie guitarist Mick Ronson was immortalised as this mural on Greenwich Avenue in his hometown of Hull in 2019. Before fame, Ronson worked as a gardener for Hull City Council.
27 Club mural
Eduardo Kobra's 27 Club mural in New York features five musicians who died aged 27 –Janis Joplin, Kurt Cobain, Jim Morrison, Jimi Hendrix and Amy Winehouse.
Jimi Hendrix
Such is his enduring legendary status, there are many Jimi Hendrix murals around the world. However, we particularly like this psychedelic one by German street artist Won ABC that was created in Leicester in May 2022 for the Bring the Paint event.
Lemmy
The Lemmy mural at his favourite drinking haunt, The Rainbow Bar & Grill in Los Angeles.
Prince
A small yet brilliant mural of Prince on Graham Road in London in April 2016.
Massive Wagons
A massive Massive Wagons 'Full Nelson' mural was unveiled in their native city of Lancaster in July 2018 to celebrate the release of their new studio album. The three-storey painting of the album cover adorned the side of The Pub in Lancaster where the band played many of their early shows. The band tweeted: 'Humbling beyond belief to have this monster mural of the Full Nelson album cover on the walls of our great city of Lancaster!'
Lemmy
A piece of graffiti in London by artist Paul Don Smith of Motörhead legend Lemmy. It appeared in 2016 a few months after Lemmy's untimely death.
The Rolling Stones
This mural of The Rolling Stones by Subset Dublin appeared above JJ Smyth's pub in Dublin's city centre, just a couple of days before the group's concert at Croke Park in May 2018.
Ian Curtis
Based on a seminal photo of Ian Curtis taken by Philippe Carly, this painting on the side of a central Manchester building was created by world-renowned street artist Akse P19 in October 2020 to mark World Mental Health Day. It was controversially painted over in August 2022 with artwork for the Manchester rapper Aitch.