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Edward Colston: Bristol slave trader statue 'was an affront'

Meanwhile the world is a FAR better place, with SO many wrongs righted, by replacing one monstrosity with another.

God help us all and save us from being buried alive in total trivia and pompous self-righteous self-congratulations.

I wonder what the REAL cost of the whole nonsensical fiasco has been. I wonder how much good that could have done spent on something REALLY worthwhile, how many hungry it could have fed.

Pathetic. LONG LIVE TOKENISM.
 
C4 News have just run a feature on the statue of Jen Reid, they were in on it from the start so have footage of the whole process, the installation, interviews with Jen, Marc Quinn etc. Essential viewing IMO. I absolutely love this work and I hope it survives long enough that I can get to see it one day.
Bristol city mayor reported on BBC as saying that it will be up to the people of Bristol to decide what happens to it. I hope and trust they decide to keep it. It forms not only a fitting replacement, but serves as a record of a remarkable day in the city's history.
 
Meanwhile the world is a FAR better place, with SO many wrongs righted, by replacing one monstrosity with another.

God help us all and save us from being buried alive in total trivia and pompous self-righteous self-congratulations.

I wonder what the REAL cost of the whole nonsensical fiasco has been. I wonder how much good that could have done spent on something REALLY worthwhile, how many hungry it could have fed.

Pathetic. LONG LIVE TOKENISM.

What a bizarre post! Marc Quinn is one of the UK’s most successful and respected artists and someone who will have no doubt generated £millions in tax revenue though sales of his work and exhibition fees. He will have paid for the statue of Jen Reid. As to the original protests, they just needed to happen, as thankfully most decent people don't tolerate racist shit.

PS Given the new statue of Jen Reid was effectively ‘dumped’/‘fly-tipped’ I guess the Bristol council could technically sell it, and if they chose to I’d be amazed if it went for less than several hundred £k given its significance and historical context.
 
Meanwhile the world is a FAR better place, with SO many wrongs righted, by replacing one monstrosity with another.

really? i'm one of the most fussy people here when it comes to visual arts and i think it's quite good. given that it's a female subject, some nice flow/curvature, without having to rely on "drapery". also interesting to see modern street clothes rather than uniforms or suits. all tastefully done. not kitschy at all.


hey, maybe this travesty we have here in toronto will make you feel better by comparison:

berczy-park-58.jpg
 
Meanwhile the world is a FAR better place, with SO many wrongs righted, by replacing one monstrosity with another.

God help us all and save us from being buried alive in total trivia and pompous self-righteous self-congratulations.

I wonder what the REAL cost of the whole nonsensical fiasco has been. I wonder how much good that could have done spent on something REALLY worthwhile, how many hungry it could have fed.

Pathetic. LONG LIVE TOKENISM.
It’s only a vacated plinth for gods sake.
 
really? i'm one of the most fussy people here when it comes to visual arts and i think it's quite good. given that it's a female subject, some nice flow/curvature, without having to rely on "drapery". also interesting to see modern street clothes rather than uniforms or suits. all tastefully done. not kitschy at all.


hey, maybe this travesty we have here in toronto will make you feel better by comparison:

berczy-park-58.jpg
Actually this post is considerably more disturbing than the one you replied to.
 
I hope that Bristol finds space for both statues and an explanation of what happened

what i would do (to accommodate that scenario/request) is place them side by side and add a chain from colston to reid, with broken shackles at her end resting at the base.
 
Meanwhile the world is a FAR better place, with SO many wrongs righted, by replacing one monstrosity with another.

God help us all and save us from being buried alive in total trivia and pompous self-righteous self-congratulations.
Quite. And it had to be said.

Not so sure about your third paragraph.
 
Meanwhile the world is a FAR better place, with SO many wrongs righted, by replacing one monstrosity with another.

God help us all and save us from being buried alive in total trivia and pompous self-righteous self-congratulations.

I wonder what the REAL cost of the whole nonsensical fiasco has been. I wonder how much good that could have done spent on something REALLY worthwhile, how many hungry it could have fed.

Pathetic. LONG LIVE TOKENISM.
Bit harsh.

It's some people's sincere response to an issue and an event. There have been and will be millions of works of art produced to various degrees of success, few of which will alleviate hunger.

It makes no sense to go down the feeding the hungry route as it can be said about practically anything: Christmas lights, balloons, pork scratchings, a night at the theatre... You get the idea.

Hunger is a big issue that needs addressing from the top. It can be done but requires will and commitment. Suddenly placing it at the feet of a bunch of artists is very wide of the mark.
 
It's some people's sincere response to an issue and an event. There have been and will be millions of works of art produced to various degrees of success, few of which will alleviate hunger.

Indeed. It is a work of art FFS! I can only assume some here, despite this being a music/audio forum, don’t grasp that huge amounts of the very best art on this planet stems from a base of real protest and oppression. Blues, jazz, folk, punk and rap are all absolutely steeped in it. It always amuses me how right-wingers seem able to bleach-out all meaning and context from music and art which was all too often created as an act of rebellion against their own beliefs and power-base.
 
Bit harsh.

It's some people's sincere response to an issue and an event. There have been and will be millions of works of art produced to various degrees of success, few of which will alleviate hunger.

It makes no sense to go down the feeding the hungry route as it can be said about practically anything: Christmas lights, balloons, pork scratchings, a night at the theatre... You get the idea.

Hunger is a big issue that needs addressing from the top. It can be done but requires will and commitment. Suddenly placing it at the feet of a bunch of artists is very wide of the mark.
Thank you for saying what I was feeling, but without the added expletives ;)

The wider point is that art (by which I mean good art, not the stuff vuk posted that picture of earlier) can change attitudes by making people think, by raising their awareness of something they may not have thought about before. It is that process of getting people to think, of raising awareness, that makes change possible. Without wider public awareness, and making the public care, you won't alleviate hunger. Art, good, public art, is one important tool you can use to raise that awareness. So don't disparage it. In this case, I think the replacement of the figure, however temporarily, has made a powerful statement, including:

  • Here is a person genuinely worthy of public commemoration. She is doing her bit to bring about change. Contrast that with the 'achievements' of the person she replaces.
  • Celebrate both her commitment, and her freedom to do this in our society.
  • What is the change she is campaigning for? Black Lives Matter. Ah, yes, I see.
  • Maybe that's something I can get behind, too...
So while Vinny may feel justified in his sarcasm, and Cheese may go along with him - the world is not a FAR better place for this act, it is however a SLIGHTLY better place. Small steps...

 
It’ll be back on a plinth in a square or street in Bristol officially within five years. I’m not sure the white slaver will be as durable- he’ll end up indoors in a museum of curiosities for school visits.
 


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