Happy art of the suburbs

But residents of the south London suburb of Brockley in Lewisham will be heartened by the news that many of its unsung delights - including the Happy Inn Chinese takeaway - are being showcased in a new art project.

The Happiness in Brockley initiative was masterminded by Royal College of Art student Simone Lia, who lives in the area. Five billboards normally used for commercial ads are emblazoned with artworks designed to spread a little happiness in SE4.

Ms Lia, who is also a children's book illustrator, said: "We thought that good pictures in the street could really brighten up the day. We decided to make it happen, and what better place than Brockley? I've been living here for two-and-a-half years and I love it."

Lewisham council awarded £1,800 to Happiness in Brockley, which proved enough to secure the hoarding space and print the works of art.

The Mayor of Lewisham, Dave Sullivan, unveiled the artists' homages to Brockley and the happiness the area inspires.

One of those involved, Tom Gauld, has designed his work with a highly select audience in mind: the people who live in the house opposite the billboard on which it will be plastered.

Explaining the inspiration for his piece, a somewhat basic sketch of a man saying "Hello" drawn on the back of a ticket stub, Mr Gauld said: "When I found that my billboard was directly opposite someone's front door, I decided to draw someone saying hello to them.

"I think it'll be nice for the people who live in that house to see it every morning when they get up."

Two other works which stand out in the project are Karen Jane's Postcard of Brockley and Lisa Olausson's Happy Inn.

Ms Jane's "postcard" features four snaps of Brockley, including a car showroom and a railway bridge. In all of them she has inserted pictures of herself wearing a red boiler suit.

She explained: "As a celebration of Brockley, this oversized postcard shows places near the billboard which are not usually seen as attractions, but are instead part of what we see every day.

"Appearing as a passer-by in each scene I am fulfilling my ambition of one day being on a postcard."

Ms Olausson decided to narrow down her local subject matter still further, devoting her billboard to a local Chinese takeaway called the Happy Inn. She admits she likes the food. "I was looking for happiness in the area and quite literally found it in this place," she said.

"The billboard site offered an opportunity to promote a local concern in a space traditionally occupied by multinational companies. Ultimately, the brief was 'happiness', and it should at least make the shop owners happy, if nobody else."

When informed by the Evening Standard of the Happy Inn's new-found prominence in Brockley, however, the person who answered the restaurant's phone didn't sound particularly happy about it, saying: "I think we'll be all right without the publicity."