These iconic chewing gum art pieces in London will soon disappear
Hundreds of tiny art pieces removed
Hundreds of tiny chewing gum art pieces will be removed from the Millennium Bridge in London as part of engineering work, several UK media reported.
“The chewing gum man”
Ben Wilson, known as “the chewing gum man” (pictured), has been painting on pieces of chewing gum crushed into the bridge since 2013.
About 600 chewing gum paintings
The suspension bridge, which crosses the River Thames and connects St Paul’s Cathedral in the City of London with the Tate Modern museum on the South Bank, is dotted with about 600 of Wilson’s gum paintings, he told The Guardian.
The bridge will be under reparation until November
Giles Shilson, the City Bridge Foundation chair, said on a press conference that the bridge would close from October 14 to November 5, to restore parts of it that have started to degrade and to give it a “much-needed deep clean that will leave it looking as good as new”.
They’re saving a “limited number” of artworks
The foundation added that “a limited” number of Wilson’s artworks could be saved, but the artist told The Guardian he would be upset if fewer than 100 survived.
Photo: Instagram @benwilsonchewinggumman
A pledge to save at least 100 artworks
In fact, he has started a petition on change.org, collecting signatures to save at least a hundred of his tiny art works. The pledge is linked to his Instagram account @benwilsonchewinggumman.
Wilson says the foundation plans on saving only 75
A foundation spokesperson told The Guardian they would work with Wilson to identify which pieces can be kept, but he has since said on his socials that they just plan on saving 75 of them.
Photo: Instagram @benwilsonchewinggumman
A balance between keeping the bridge clean and conserving some art
“We feel this strikes the right balance between keeping the bridge looking spick and span and allowing people to continue to enjoy some of the artwork Ben has created on the bridge,” they said.
Photo: Instagram @benwilsonchewinggumman
Artist devastated that years of work will be destroyed
Wilson, whose work on old crushed chewing gum has featured across Europe, said he was devastated that years of work would be destroyed.
Photo: Instagram @benwilsonchewinggumman
Transforming rubbish into art since 2013
“I’ve been working on this bridge since 2013, transforming rubbish into art. I’m quite literally taking what is thrown away and spat out and turning it into a piece of artwork,” he told The Guardian.
Photo: Instagram @benwilsonchewinggumman
Each piece tells a story about people he encountered
Wilson said he regarded his work as a form of social commentary, with each piece telling a “small story about people”, inspired by those he encountered every day, including commuters, schoolchildren, locals and other artists.
Not just the “chewing gum man”
But Wilson isn’t just “the chewing gum man”, he also creates art on bricks, pavement and small mosaic tiles. Some of it will be stuck to the walls of London's Underground train platforms, Reuters reported.
More personal artwork
According to Wilson, those images are more personal than the chewing gum works and represent an "intuitive visual diary".
Raised by artist parents
London-born Ben Wilson, aged 60, was raised by artist parents and recalls working with clay from age three, with his first art show at around 10 or 11 years old, he told Reuters.
Interest in discarded items from a consumerist world
His artwork developed into sculpture and large pieces in the natural environment before his interest turned to rubbish and discarded items from a consumerist world, like chewing gum, which he's been painting for 19 years.
Art is not just in museums
“Art doesn’t just exist in the hallowed walls of the Tate Modern, in museums. It can sometimes be hidden and magical,” the artist has said.
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