Bristol City Council has been accused of 'vandalism' after obscuring graffiti in Stokes Croft.
The piece in question, a mural by local graffiti artists Cheo and 3Dom, was painted over by BCC. The artists, who have both displayed their work in the Royal West of England Academy, had been given permission by the owners of the building to paint the mural.
Local group The People's Republic Of Stokes Croft had this to say about the council's actions:
‘The work was done with the express permission of the property owner, and the council were made aware of this on Friday, yet on Monday the piece was painted over. PRSC has been working to promote Stokes Croft as an outdoor gallery. Whilst Bristol City Council has been making noises about wanting to work with the community, their behavior seems to be negative, antagonistic, and certainly unacceptable...This kind of behavior has been going on for over two years now.'
Bristol City Council has found itself involved in controversy regarding the obscuring of graffiti before, after council workers mistakenly painted over a mural by world-renowned local artist Banksy, thought to be worth over £100,000, in 2007. The council, who had previously ordered all work by Banksy to be preserved, believe that a mistake by their graffiti removal team was to blame for covering the ten-year old mural in black paint.
