February 10th
From The Times:
Council cleaners jetwash away Banksy’s graffiti art
Nicola Woolcock
When council cleaners spotted graffiti 24 hours before the official opening of a new London square, they enthusiasically removed every trace of the offending drawings.
Unfortunately, the two stencils they wiped out were drawn by Banksy, the subversive artist. One of his works fetched more than £100,000 in auction at Sotheby’s this week.
To make matters worse, the street cleaners did not deem the graffiti worthy of being photographed before destruction, as is their usual policy. Nor did they seek permission from the building’s owners.
The council has now admitted its blunder and apologised.
The street cleaners, armed with jetwashers, had been ordered to touch up the area before the official opening of Gillett Square in Hackney last November.
Two days before the ceremony, Hackney Cooperative Developments (HCD) decided to uncover a 4ft Banksy stencil of a girl wearing a frilly dress and a gas mask. It had been covered by plywood for several months.
It was scrubbed off the day after, along with another Banksy picture on their building of a man’s face.
Adam Hart, executive director of HCD, wrote to Hackney Council complaining that the murals had been removed, saying: “These were famous artworks by Banksy and of considerable value and there is likely to be something of an outcry.” He said later: “Perhaps the nature of the whole thing is that graffiti is ephemeral, so maybe Banksy would approve.”
The council is now drawing up a list of graffiti artwork in the borough that should not be removed. Mr Hart said: “It’s something they need to be aware of so they don’t eradicate everything that gives character to the area.”
