Protest art post-Grenfell: Graffiti Jam & the spoken word
I normally post more academic articles but as we mark the second anniversary of the Grenfell Tower Fire, I thought I’d post about the community and use of art as a form of protest. It’s symbolic of what makes North Kensington so unique (and why I love living here).
The Spoken Word
The following two videos from the Silent March demonstrate the power of the spoken word and capture the sentiment of the community beautifully. I find them haunting.
The first ‘We will not betray the dead’ is by Lowkey, a local musician and activist. He references grime artist Stormzy who famously called out Grenfell and the lack of response during his performance in the Brit awards. You can see Stormzy in the background watching Lowkey.
The second ‘We walk in Silence’ is read by Zayed Cred who started the Grenfell silent marches, the marches have taken place on the 14th of every month since the 14 July 2017. I attend as often as I can – for me they provide the space to reflect on those that died and those grieving and in pain.
Trellick Tower Graffiti Jam
Trellick Tower marked the second anniversary of the Grenfell Tower Fire with a Graffiti Jam. Below is a collection of the art.
Light
The night before the 2nd anniversary Grenfell United shone messages on unsafe buildings. Many buildings were lit in Green…
On the Monday following the anniversary, the 17th June the following message lit up the House of Commons.
