Grafitti Artist Gets Art Show

A graffiti artist once jailed for five year for defacing bridges, walls and railway carriages is cashing in on his notoriety. Simon Sunderland, 32, who used the “tag” FISTA, is being given a legitimate public art exhibition of his work. His antics with aerosol paint became the scourge of northern England during the 1990s before they were curtailed by the stiff prison sentence. Sentencing him at Sheffield Crown Court in March 1996, the Judge described Sunderland as “one of the most prevalent and frequent spoilers of buildings in this area.” One of the judges commented at the time: “Although it has been claimed that Sunderland’s work was art it does occur to us that it will be sometime before he is asked to restore the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.” A decade on, however, despite subsequent court appearances for criminal damage and petty offences, his work is about to adorn a private gallery in his home city. Pieces will be on sale to the public at Archipelago, in Sheffield, as he attempts to launch a new career as a recognised artist. Sunderland once wrote alongside a railway track: “In society based on image, greed and selfishness we are the few who have broken the chains by expressing our art by any means necessary.” (For full source and article click the Headline) Irish Art