One of the murals painted as part of the ‘Arts Quarter’ campaign and on Katherine Street has been removed, painted over by – I presume – Croydon Council. It was one of the more risqué pieces but the nature of Street Art is impermanent and art should illicit a response, positive or negative.
On my usual route around the shopping promenade it was a head turner and I could visibly see passers by doing a double take or smirking perhaps its location was to prominent and its proximity to Queens Park garnered to much attention, it reminded me of the sculpture by Marc Quinn of Alison Lapper Pregnant situated on the Fourth Plinth in Trafalgar Square the sculpture gained huge public interest and media attention being the first to appear in the rolling programme of temporary fixtures.
We’re a great supporter of street art in Croydon, and are fully behind the growing arts quarter in St George’s Walk, which is producing some fantastic work.
I hope the removal of Steve Johnson’s mural, Untitled Female #1 doesn’t dissuade Street Artists from provoking reaction or diluting the campaign started by Kevin Zuchowski-Morrison.
Update 20.08.2015
Stephen Johnson’s latest mural appeared and whilst it hasn’t to date generated the public, media & council interest at least its now more “family friendly”.
I’m glad they’ve removed this misogynist piece of rubbish. To compare it to the sculpture of Alison Lapper is to totally miss the point (and to insult both Marc Quinn and Alison herself). I’m not surprised that a certain sort of man would not understand why this present piece is objectionable and inappropriate, but some people’s ignorance doesn’t change the reality. You wouldn’t get away with racist “art”, why should misogynist “art” be any different?
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Hi Catherine, thanks for commenting you are of course correct in your interpretation although it wasn’t my goal to compare it to Marc Quinn’s sculpture I was merely ‘reminded by it’. All art should illicit an emotional response and perhaps the replacement (if/when it arrives) will create a more positive lasting impression than misogyny. Art is freedom of expression and street art is impermanent I’m not sure if I agree with the Councils decision to remove it but it did generate a lot of media attention for the Arts Quarter.
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