GCS X Outlines Collective Bench Restoration project

Last year, our youth forum, Granite City Speaks, identified an issue at Cruyff Court Neale Cooper in the Torry area: the benches surrounding the pitch had suffered from wear and tear and graffiti. To address this, they consulted with local youth to determine the best way to restore the benches. The participants came up with a creative solution: using spray paint to decorate the benches with their own designs.

Kelsey Seivwright, a member of Granite City Speaks, shared, "Having previously collaborated with Kirsty, we reached out to Outlines Collective, a group of graffiti artists, to join our Torry Community Day. They provided a workshop where young people could learn spray painting techniques.” The workshop was a great success, with many young people actively participating. The experience sparked numerous creative ideas, which were then transformed into designs for the benches. Naomi Christie, street artist for Outlines Collective, said, "At the family fun day, the community warmly welcomed us and shared their views on outdoor art activities. They helped paint three new canvases for DLLT and contributed drawings and suggestions for future Streetsport projects. We are proud that the designs from this event, including ideas like the football pitch, flowers, and shapes, have been incorporated into the bench designs. All of these ideas came from the young people."

Fast forward to 2025 and the benches were ready to be restored! Outlines, ran by street artists Kirsty Lawie and Naomi Christie, had come up with 8 different designs from all the creations they collected from the fun day and were ready to be spray painted onto the benches. Granite City Speaks members as well as some Streetsport volunteers and staff came down to help both Kirsty and Naomi bring these designs to life.

The restoration process took place over one weekend. On the first day, the team primed and painted the benches with masonry white paint to cover any previous graffiti, allowing them to dry. They returned on Sunday to spray the designs, resulting in vibrant and stunning benches. Brooke Flood, a Granite City Speaks member, said, "Spray painting the benches was a fantastic experience that I thoroughly enjoyed. Thank you to Kirsty and Naomi for teaching us the basics and trusting us to paint our own benches. I would 100% participate in an activity like this again."

Kirsty Lawie, street artist from Outlines Collective, had this to say about the day "We were really impressed by the young people from GCS who helped paint the benches. They made the project fun and assisted with applying the designs and selecting the layout. We also met Streetsport participants and community members who inquired about the project. Everyone was very friendly and really showed how valuable the Cruyff Court is to the local community. We can't wait to continue working with DLLT."

Aimee Culley, Streetsport Operations Co-ordinator, shared “It’s a privilege to work with like minded organisations such as Outlines Collective to provide our young people new and exciting opportunities to learn creative skills and better their local communities. I am really looking forward to future collaborations with Outlines.”

A special thanks to ETZ Ltd’s Community & Coast Programme for supporting this project and allowing it to happen.