A beautiful new video of the Cardiff Bay 'My City My Shirt' mural has been released. Residents reacted angrily earlier this year after the mural, dubbed Cardiff's 'Mona Lisa,' was painted over to make way for a McDonald's advert. But the mural was re-painted in a new location on James Street, just across the road from the original, with the help of Unify Creative and McDonald's.
Now, stunning drone footage of the mural, produced by Unify Creative, has been released. The video is accompanied by a touching poem which is read out by "good friend" of Unify, Joyce from Women Seeking Sanctuary Wales (WSSAG).
The poem reads: "She came dressed in blue, shrouded in red/ I know she is the one, there is a crown on her head/ A beacon of beauty a true piece of art/ She was sent to Unify the coldest of hearts/ Leading with love, she is a testament to brighter day/ And you can find her perfectly poised in Tiger Bay." In an Instagram post releasing the video, Unify Creative said that the piece was based on a poem created by musician, presenter, and model, Asha Jane.
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The My City, My Shirt mural, designed to celebrate the diversity of the capital, features mother-of-two Maimuna Yoncana, originally from Guinea-Bissau, wearing a Cardiff City shirt and cradling her baby bump. The portrait, painted in April 2021, was part of a project of the same name organised by Cardiff creatives Yusuf Ismail and Shawqi Hasson, which aims to encourage more people of colour to connect with their city and football club.
The original mural was painted over and set to be replaced by a McDonald's advert until the company was informed of the public reaction to the move. In response to a tweet criticising the move, a spokesperson for McDonald's said they had instructed the artist to repaint the mural on the side of Mischief's bar.
They said: "The site was hired by a third party working with the artist who painted the original mural. We were unaware of what was on the site prior to our installation and have instructed the artist to repaint his original mural immediately." Work began to re-paint the much-loved mural across the road on James Street in February.
"As we approach the one anniversary of our “My City, My Shirt” mural. We want to share this piece that we created based on a poem created by the talented @ashajanethealien & narrated by our good friend Joyce from @wssag_wales. Thank you everyone who supported us its deeply appreciated and a huge thank you to @mcdonaldsuk for all their support in making this happen," Unify Creative wrote in an Instagram post sharing the video.
