Here in Cork, as in an increasing portion of the western world, housing is gradually turning into a privilege, instead of a right. For the Ardu Street Art Festival in this city of 190,000, the second largest in Ireland, street artist Asbestos posed himself with a box on his head to symbolize our need for a roof.
“As a country we are currently in an existential crisis over housing,” he tells us. “There’s a fear and uncertainly about finding a safe space, and the system seems to be stacked in favor of the landlords.”
A short roster of artists are here this year for the festival – and hometown talent Conor Harrington is currently working on his first mural for the city. The other participants this year include Friz and Shane O’Malley. Of course, being in your hometown doesn’t mean much if you don’t actually have a home.
“Home isn’t simply about where you were born, it’s where you feel you belong, where you feel safe, where you’re welcomed, where you can come back to and feel accepted, loved and part of a community,” says Asbestos as he discusses rents and mortgages. He tells us that it took over a week to paint this new mural, and during that time he had many conversations with people on the street who feel the economic anxiety and insecurity that is pushing more people closer to the door – here and elsewhere.
“It was wonderful to speak to so many curious Corkonians about the mural. The support has been amazing from the public and my friends and family here, Cork definitely felt like my home for a week.”
Other Articles You May Like from BSA:
We’re off the street now, the BSA team, as New York City goes into lock-down mode in the face of the global Covid19 virus pandemic. We know that our medical infrastructure will be overwhelmed, be...
Our Weekly Interview with the Street (Caper) (photo Jaime Rojo) A sale on melons at Met Supermaket this week? (Celso) (photo Jaime Rojo) A melange of soot, chain links, and da...
Our weekly focus on the moving image and art in the streets. And other oddities. Now screening : 1. Nychos “Wilhelmine von Bayreuth" 2. RETNA X Vhils in Echo Park 3. TRAV MSK 4. OKUDA; FALLAS...
Joe Ficalora, the Bushwick Collective founder and curator, invited us to stop by the warehouse where tonight's Warehouse Party will be held and offered us an exclusive peek at the Subway Art Inst...
It’s that time of the year again! Our 13th “Hot List” of books – a best-of collection that is highly personal and unscientific presents a sampling across the board for a variety of graffiti and stree...