A Bondi Beach mural has been vandalised, just hours after Waverly Council voted against calls to remove it. The mural, a work by Archibald-nominated Sydney artist Luke Cornish — also known as E.L.K— is a comment on Australia’s inhumane treatment of asylum seekers and refugees.
Yesterday, Waverly Council voted to continue displaying the mural, amid a public backlash.
This morning, residents discovered that the mural had largely been painted over.
Cornish painted the eight-metre mural on the seawall, as part of his solo exhibition being shown at the Bondi Pavillion. The mural depicts 24 armed Border Force officers standing under the message “(Not) Welcome to Bondi”.
“The piece is a comment on our treatment of asylum seekers in Australian detention facilities,” Cornish explained in an Instagram post.
“The 24 Australian Border force officers represent the 24 suicides in these detention facilities (onshore and offshore) since 2010.”
The piece was met with a polarizing reaction upon its debut. The artwork was condemned by Local Liberal councillor Leon Goltsman, who took to Facebook to deem it “offensive.”
“What we now have are politically motivated offensive propaganda likely to offend families and turn away visitors,” he wrote.
A change.org petition was started by Travis Russell, in a bid to remove the mural. “I personally feel that any depictions of guns is dangerous, and it’s [got] no place at Bondi Beach,” Russell told ABC.
In response, Andrew Worssam set up a rival petition, praising the confronting nature of the mural.
“This brave, striking mural, by Archibald nominated artist Luke Cornish, draws attention to the plight of the desperate and forgotten asylum seekers marooned on Australia’s prison islands, Nauru and Manus,” a description for the petition reads. “It might be uncomfortable viewing for some, but that doesn’t mean it shouldn’t exist.”
In related news, Sculpture by the Sea recently threatened to move their annual showcase from Bondi amid a dispute with Waverly Council over an accessibility path.
The exhibition’s founding director, David Handley, believes that making the location accessible to everyone would be detrimental to the show. Read more about it now.
