'Homeless Jesus' sculpture banned from central London
LONDON -- They've appeared in Dublin, Madrid and Washington D.C., gone on display at the Vatican and even been praised by Pope Francis as a "beautiful piece of art," but a Homeless Jesus artwork isn't welcome in London, according to Westminster Council.
The sculptures, casts of which have cropped up at several cities, has been blocked from appearing outside the Methodist Central Hall church and venue near Parliament Square in the heart of the city by officials.
They say it "would fail to maintain or improve (preserve or enhance) the character or appearance of the Westminster Abbey and Parliament Square conservation area".
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The life-size bronze sculpture was created by Canadian artist Timothy Schmalz and inspired by Matthew: 25. It depicts a figure shrouded in a blanket with visible wounds on his feet and leaves enough room on the bench for someone else to sit down.
The work is a "representation that suggests Christ is with the most marginalized in our society," Schmalz says.
The church has said they're "extremely disappointed" at the council's decision.
"We’re led to the unfortunate conclusion that a sculpture of Jesus, depicted as homeless, isn’t welcome in Westminster and so close to the Houses of Parliament," Reverend Dr. Martyn Atkins, Team Leader at Methodist Central, said.
"I imagine many people will find the Council suggestion that this particular piece of public art would somehow lower the tone of the neighbourhood insulting and ironic. Homelessness is real in Central London."
A petition has been launched asking the council to reconsider, and has currently received some 1,100 signatures.
A Westminster City Council spokesperson told Mashable: “We welcome public art and sculptures in Westminster and there is no objection whatsoever to the sculpture being located within the Methodist Central Hall itself.
“However, there are traditionally a large number of applications for monuments and memorials in Parliament Square and the surrounding area and it reached saturation point some years ago when the council introduced a policy of no further statues being allowed in this area. The council feels that in respect of this application an exception is not warranted. The applicants have been advised that the statue needs to be located elsewhere.”
940 people were counted as "rough sleepers" in London in autumn 2015, 26% of the national figure.
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Tim Chester was Senior Editor, Real Time News in Los Angeles. Before that he was Deputy Editor of Mashable UK in London. Prior to joining Mashable, Tim was a Senior Web Editor at Penguin Random House, helping to relaunch the Rough Guides website and other travel brands. He was also a writer for Buzzfeed, GQ and The Sunday Times, covering everything from culture to tech and current affairs. Before that, he was Deputy Editor at NME.COM, overseeing content and development on the London-based music and entertainment site. Tim loves music and travel and has combined these two passions at festivals from Iceland to Malawi and beyond.
