Category: Murals

A vibrant new piece of public art has been unveiled at The Tarradale Chippy in Muir of Ord, marking the latest installation in Mikeysline’s ongoing campaign to spark conversations about mental health and suicide prevention.

The charity commissioned artist Marc Delaye, of Fresh Paint, to create this eye-catching mural as a highly visible reminder of the support services they offer across the North of Scotland.

The artwork itself is an engaging and whimsical scene. It features a character strongly resembling Willy Wonka, who, in a playful twist, is happily enjoying a large bucket of french fries (chips) instead of a sweet treat. The figure, dressed in the iconic purple jacket and top hat, stands within a fantastical setting: a deep forest with gnarled, twisting trees, vibrant purple and pink foliage, oversized lollipops, and bright red and white toadstools, all beneath a bright blue sky. Adding to the fantasy is a large, realistic-looking bumblebee hovering on the right side.

This Muir of Ord mural is the newest addition to an expanding collection of artworks designed by Fresh Paint to highlight Mikeysline’s presence and availability throughout the region. Previous murals are already visible in prominent locations, including Inverness, Wick, and Thurso. Earlier this year, a similar piece featuring Scottish singer Callum Beattie was installed in the Inverness Victorian Market, further promoting the charity’s mission.

Mikeysline has established itself as a vital resource for residents across the Highlands, Islands, and Moray. The organisation is dedicated to dismantling the stigma surrounding mental health by promoting open and honest conversations with anyone experiencing emotional distress.

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Video via CARZAR creative

I’m Marc Delaye and I run Freshpaint.org
Fresh Paint is about commissioned murals, people come with their ideas and I try to paint their Vision. I’ve I’ve kind of always done it, I started in the in the late uh late 80s, I was supposed to stop, then I just carried on because there was a demand up here in the highlands.
Like we said earlier graffiti is a bit like a black eye to the culture, when you say the word graffiti because it’s it’s an umbrella term that also refers to the people writing on graves, racist graffiti …what I’m doing is nothing to do with that .
I think there is a it’s always been a lot of wrong perception around the artform and a lot of confusion between the medium and the style of the painting.
The perception has changed, some things have changed some haven’t, I think a lot of businesses started to uh to target some young, from a sign point of view which is more what we did here like a signage, it’s the old school way to do it, it’s full of imperfections and I think that’s what makes it connects with people
You can see at the moment like a lot of those young dudes in America going on the sides of buildings painting those vertical lettering like 30 m, 50 m high, but I’m too old for that.