Can the Borough of Kensington and Chelsea turn parking into an art?
The Borough of Kensington and Chelsea have come up with a novel idea to thwart would-be fraudsters in forging parking permits. The council have used specially commissioned drawings by illustrators of local landmarks and events, which have been printed onto the permits making them difficult to fake. They include designs of the Albert Bridge, the Brutalist high-rise Trellick Tower and scenes of the Notting Hill carnival. Councillor Nicholas Paget-Brown hopes these parking permits will become collectors' pieces in years to come. Well, quite possibly they could, as the first examples of art and permit parking in this country and perhaps one of the first instances of art and law enforcement.
Is it an appropriate use of art? It depends, I suppose, on how we perceive art and in particular public art in this country. Public art has long been used as a political tool - think of the statues of Lenin and the propaganda posters of the USSR. So there is, arguably, no reason to find fault with an artist getting into bed with the local council, as some of the best art in this country has been created that way - consider Antony Gormley's Angel of the North. So far Kensington and Chelsea have approached illustrators specifically, but I wonder if any of the current crop of contemporary art stars would ever agree? And what might it mean for ephemeral art in the future?
I'd like a TV licence bill designed by Peter Blake or a council tax reminder burnt at the edges by Sarah Lucas' cigarettes. Incidentally Lucas is one of a group of artists who have designed limited edition car tax disc holders that can be bought online for £40. Now if only an affluent borough like Kensington and Chelsea had thought of a similar idea, they might have made a killing.
