Monday, August 19, 2013

[Updated] The Joe Strummer mural is gone


[Bobby Williams]


[Via an EVG reader]

The iconic Joe Strummer mural that has graced the side of Niagara on East Seventh Street and Avenue A since the spring of 2003 is gone. Workers renovating 132 E. Seventh St. blasted the mural into oblivion today.

Graffiti artists Zephyr and Dr. Revolt created the mural several months after the Clash singer's untimely death in late 2002.



The mural originally looked like this...


Dr. Revolt updated the mural in February 2009...


Lately, Joe wasn't looking so good. And workers told residents that they'd have to wipe out the mural while restoring the building...



Still.

Here's my last photo of it from Saturday night...



I've heard that the folks at Niagara plan to have Dr. Revolt recreate the mural as it originally looked, though there hasn't been any official confirmation of that.

Updated:
A mural will return.

RIP.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Joe Strummer gets a splash of Niagara

Joe Strummer gets a new look, skyline

[Updated] Joe Strummer would have been 60 today
at

23 comments:

  1. east village toursAugust 19, 2013 at 7:39 PM

    a tragic loss i simply cannot take. please please Niagara let dr. revolt bring back joe....

    ReplyDelete
  2. gaminetteAugust 19, 2013 at 7:52 PM

    NOOOO!!! Will they re-do it once work is done - do we know?

    (If they do re-do it, the quote ought to be changed to "turning rebellion into money." haha.)

    ReplyDelete
  3. gaminetteAugust 19, 2013 at 7:54 PM

    ps just saw that they hope to recreate it. huzzah.

    ReplyDelete
  4. AnonymousAugust 19, 2013 at 7:59 PM

    Fucking RUDE!

    ReplyDelete
  5. AnonymousAugust 19, 2013 at 8:02 PM

    SO very sad to see this - Please do it again, Revvy!

    ReplyDelete
  6. AnonymousAugust 19, 2013 at 8:21 PM

    Not only was it crap graffiti but I'm pretty sure Joe would've thought it extremely lame. Live in the now, at te very least.

    ReplyDelete
  7. UnknownAugust 19, 2013 at 8:21 PM

    Have you learned any more about this since posting? Thanks!

    Terrible news...

    ReplyDelete
  8. AnonymousAugust 19, 2013 at 8:59 PM

    His arms look like spaghetti in the first version of the mural!

    ReplyDelete
  9. AnonymousAugust 19, 2013 at 9:04 PM

    I wonder if there's any connection between Mary Help of Christians church being torn down, and this. God never opens a door without closing a window.

    ReplyDelete
  10. EV GrieveAugust 19, 2013 at 9:07 PM

    @Unknown

    Haven't heard any updates... I do think a new Strummer mural will grace this wall again...

    ReplyDelete
  11. AnonymousAugust 19, 2013 at 9:13 PM

    At least we have the Ramones mural. And people said they didn't like it!

    ReplyDelete
  12. CRAugust 19, 2013 at 9:22 PM

    Awful! And on the eve of Joe's birthday:
    http://www.ticketweb.com/t3/sale/SaleEventDetail?dispatch=loadSelectionData&eventId=3744434&pl=kfny

    ReplyDelete
  13. Lawrence Van AbbemaAugust 19, 2013 at 9:22 PM

    I have a small appearance in the video watching the artist at work.

    ReplyDelete
  14. ScoobyAugust 19, 2013 at 9:36 PM

    Dreadful - simply dreadful... ESPECIALLY in the days before his birthday.
    Look - as long as it will be redone at a later time I can deal with this latest "scrubbing" and "de-characterizing" of what was a true community and neighborhood. Otherwise - it's up to us to get an appropriate Strummer-ism up there (or MANY MANY of them). Yes - "turning rebellion into money" should be there.

    And to the bollocks who said live in the present - be gone. You're up against people who respect the past and the great contributions of people, such as Joe Strummer, that have been made in the past.

    ReplyDelete
  15. AnonymousAugust 19, 2013 at 9:45 PM

    That mural is an EV landmark; I truly hope it can be recreated. I was upset over the whiteout at Tu Casa, but this one is just driving me up the wall.

    ReplyDelete
  16. AnonymousAugust 19, 2013 at 11:48 PM

    Wish people would not be so critical of the mural or the artist. It was a nice gift to have Joe looking out over us...a welcome face.

    ReplyDelete
  17. AnonymousAugust 20, 2013 at 1:54 AM

    Jesse Malin confirmed via twitter that the mural will be back within the next few weeks. All is not lost :)

    ReplyDelete
  18. chickenunderwearAugust 20, 2013 at 7:02 AM

    I hope to see it again soon.

    http://whatyourdonotknowbecauseyouarenotme.blogspot.com/2009/08/today-woulda-been-joe-strummers.html

    Joe was the voice of my teenage anger.

    ReplyDelete
  19. AnonymousAugust 20, 2013 at 9:50 AM

    It's hard to express how fucking sad and angry this destruction makes me feel.

    Replacing the mural is a step, but it's a recreation of something special and original and can never have the "mana" of the real thing. An icon that always spoke to me (both the mural and Joe himself)

    This is another indication that my time here in the EV is drawing to a close. Other neighborhoods and cities are starting to seem much more realistic for the next 10 years of my life.

    ReplyDelete
  20. UnknownAugust 21, 2013 at 12:32 PM

    REVOLT is gonna redo it!
    Told me yesterday.

    ReplyDelete
  21. AnonymousAugust 27, 2013 at 3:28 PM

    Has anyone so outraged here considered that maybe that building was seriously in need of repair?

    And it looks like a new version of the mural is coming back after the repairs are done. So pipe down, crybabies.

    ReplyDelete
  22. dianaproSeptember 3, 2013 at 9:41 PM

    Really hope to see this restored- it is hugely important to the neighborhood. Here's an image of me participating in JR's inside out project: http://www.insideoutproject.net/en

    You get your photo taken in a truck (he goes all over the world) and then post it somewhere in your neighborhood to show the world what your life is like and what places mean something to you. This was my place.



    <img src="http://projansky.com/family/diana/insideoutphoto.jpg>
    <br>

    ReplyDelete
  23. UnknownSeptember 11, 2013 at 7:06 PM

    Strummer was the man. I can't wait to get a hold on their greatest hits album that came out yesterday. Have you seen their box set? It comes with everything you'd ever need, look at it! http://youtu.be/jB2j7NGvej4

    ReplyDelete

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