Street art puts focus on black women

LONDON - In a bright yellow cloth shirt, arms outstretched and adorned with bangles, the image of Shaney Blackman towering over six metres tall on a wall in east London is arresting.

Blackman's portrait is the last in a series of 10 murals blazoned across the city highlighting the lives of strong, black women by artist Neequaye Dreph Dsane, known as Dreph.

Dreph says the portraits, far from capturing celebrity or famous faces, seek to celebrate everyday women, such as Blackman, a legal professional who quit her high-powered job to volunteer and travel the world.