3/1 To Win
Derby County’s new home kit for the 2019/20 season was revealed this morning – and supporters may have spotted the mural that stands proudly on the Morley Hayes South Stand wall at Pride Park Stadium in both the reveal and behind the scenes videos.
Derby’s new home kit, produced by Umbro, was shown for the first time across the Rams’ digital channels earlier today.
In addition to the mural, there’s also a fly poster wall that covers the Morley Hayes South Stand walkway featuring iconic moments from the club’s rich history, soundbites and fans’ chants.
Historical moments invoke feelings of nostalgia while images of Pride Park invoke feelings of pride, which is a key influence of the 2019/20 home shirt design.
‘Turn Up The Bass’ is a mixed-media artwork by Derby-born artist Iona Rowland, who helped created the mural and fly poster wall.
The monumental installation comprises of multiple layers of oil paint, spray paint and silk screen prints and references Derby’s rich music culture throughout the 1990’s.
The artist has employed cut and paste methods used in early hip-hop music to juxtapose visual debris from the city’s diverse music scene with iconic moments from Derby County matches.
The artwork forefronts Simon ‘Bassline’ Smith, part of British electronic production group Drumsound & Bassline Smith. Founded in Derby in the mid-90’s, the group were prolific in writing dub plates and DJing at the city’s ‘Technique’ nightclub.
Iona explained: The image of Bassline Smith has been silk screen-printed multiple times using a large benday dot.
“The dots are overlaid and misaligned to create the illusion of three dimensions so that when you stand in front of the mural it appears to move.
“Much like going to a drum and bass night or a football match, it’s experiential and immersive.”
In the centre of the mural, silk screen prints of musician and Derby County fan Niall Horan begin to metamorphose into one another, shifting between 2D and 3D - something the artist says will ‘feel cinematic for the viewers’. Adjacent to Niall is Iona’s depiction of Paulo Wanchope’s 1997 wonder goal against Manchester United at Old Trafford, realised in oil and spray paint.
Also featured is the ‘Progress’ nightclub logo which has been screen-printed onto the artwork using a signature ‘freestyle’ technique. During the 1990’s, ‘Progress’ helped Derby become a Mecca for house music and was innovative in its use of live musicians and resident DJ’s. The record artwork from ‘Everybody’ by Progress presents The Boy Wunda has been resampled by the artist using a ‘colour bleed print process’ and incorporated into the composition.
The background of the painting gives a nod to one man band ‘White Town’ with a solarized, hand-rendered film still from his number one hit ‘Your Woman’, released in 1997, the video for which was filmed in Derby.
‘Turn Up The Bass’ is a visual labyrinth of 1990’s music culture in Derby, evoking nostalgia, celebrating creative talent in the city, and underlining the synergies between music and football - intervals, tempo, rhythm, and most importantly passion.
Make sure you take in the revamped Morley Hayes South Stand walkway at Pride Park Stadium next season – and experience it all for yourself!
