House mural highlights town's street art scene

A beautiful mural, dubbed 'The Lady of Shrubland Street', has shone a light on the developing street art scene in a Warwickshire town.

The artwork in Royal Leamington Spa has won huge social media acclaim, including more than 9,000 likes on the BBC Midlands Instagram account.

"I think it's stunning," says artist Tim Robottom, from Brink Contemporary Arts.

"But the one thing it makes me think is 'my next piece has got to be even better.'"

Mr Robottom, whose street art name is Lord Numb, created the art nouveau image opposite Shrubland Street Community Primary School with fellow artist MIG 29.

And the pair's work features in a series of more than 20 pieces in the Royal Leamington Spa street arts trail, which can be followed with a downloadable map.

"I just started down on the canal predominently," said Mr Robottom.

"And then gradually, as people have seen more and more of it, it's become more popular."

Tim Robottom's love of street art was developed through his passion for Hip Hop during his time as a schoolboy in Coventry

Leamington Spa has a long association with elephants, with world-reknowned elephant trainer Sam Lockhart living in the town in the late 1800s, and this mural by Lord Numb and N4T4 is situated near the town's Mill Street bridge

At the entrance to West Street car park, drivers are greeted by MIG 29's Leamington sign

Jules Muck is a graffiti and mural artist based in Venice, California, and she created Cat, Mouse & Cheese next to the Grand Union Canal off Althorpe Street

Mr Robottom founded Brink Contemporay Arts in 2010, with the first events taking place at Kenilworth Castle then the town centre.

And he says it's "passion for art" that drives him to deliver more pieces of work.

"Art and music are really the only things that I've been good at," he said.

Between April and October, art events take place under the umbrella of Leamington Mural Festival.

"A lot of the festivals across the country and around the world focus on one weekend or a week or maybe two weeks," Mr Robottom added.

"At the moment I don't have the manpower to do that, but maybe at some point in the future we may be able to do something where we have street food, a stage, DJs, breakdancing, children's workshops and big murals going up around the town."

Just off one of Leamington Spa's busiest junctions is one of the town's best-known artworks, Future Synth by Void One, on Clemens Street

Look up from Smith Street to spot Lord Numb and MIG 29's tribute to a very famous bear

Brothers ID-iom, who are originally from the Isle of Man, created Undercover Lovers in a passageway in Clemens Street

One of Lord Numb's first artworks was Climate Change Bear off Clemens Street

The artist believes Leamington Spa has embraced the street art "to a certain degree, yes".

"It's getting easier, certainly in terms of people coming to me offering a wall," he said.

"But the funding still isn't forthcoming and some financial support would be much appreciated."

Longer term, Mr Robottom hopes to expand his work beyond Leamington Spa and also open a street art shop.

In an alleyway underneath the Leamington to London railway line, you'll find Modern Madonna by Lord Numb

A popular piece of artwork on the canalside by N4T4 has become known as The Queen of the Grand Union

Tim Robottom incorporated the natural world in his piece close to Eagle Street Rec

One of the latest pieces to appear in Leamington Spa is by 7th Pencil at Eagle Street Rec