"CAN" - Ken's Waterloo
One of the last gestures of Ken Livingstone in his role as "Socialist Mayor of London" was to kick "hoody hugging" Boris's ass with a massive street cool exhibition of graffiti art devouring Waterloo's tunnels.
Posh art correspondents promoted this as ' the elite of the London art world convening in Lambeth to examine graffiti in a dank railway tunnel." ...hmm...
The illusive Banksy pulled together other grafters to transform the dank tunnels into a showcase of contemporary cave painting.
Well it's no longer graffiti - it's more akin to graphic art on walls - and long gone are the days when high court judges threw Graffiti artists into the slammer for 5 years!
No self respecting graffitist would risk the time it takes to produce such nicely drawn 'commercial art' that was on show here ... and in Banksy's case command such commercial fees.
Of course there was the social conscience element that encouraged (implicated) 'visitors to the exhibition' to "have a go" with stencils and paints that were, of course, prepared earlier.
Apparently none of the works was for sale, nor the tunnel, which was rented from its owners and reverted to "public use" (not ownership) after the show. Well if there's a Banksy on the wall it could prove to be a real bonus for Eurostar!
Even so - it was fun and the crowds that gathered there were a jolly friendly bunch.... not a hoody to cuddle between them!
Ken Livingstone was greatly supported by a number of artists (including RCA'ers) who helped fundraise a substantial £250K for his Mayoral election Campaign. Check out the Artists Support Ken website which is still accessible to see their generously donated works - and remember what Ken Livingstone said.
"London is a city where the arts flourish. Artists in all fields make a central contribution to how we see our city and our society as a whole, and I am delighted that so many fantastic artists are willing to contribute in this practical way to helping keep London on a progressive and forward-thinking path." Ken Livingstone
While you are on line check out the Fourth Plinth - one of the best Livingstone initiatives - and a brilliant way to redress a monolith...?