This is the first piece of work I’ve created since having a tutorial with Johnathan about becoming more ‘fine-art’. This piece was originally a nighttime street scene with star constellations and a moon, I altered it to a day time and I think the lighter background actually works so much better with the houses. I did this mainly so I could add in some text, I thought as the houses and the street were quite magically coloured and surreal it got me thinking about an article I read about certain Landlords and their new rules, that if for you are on benefits and a variety of other situations you cannot rent on certain streets. Clearly discriminatory.
“The property mogul Mr Wilson, has banned single mothers, domestic violence victims, people on low incomes, those on benefits and even plumbers from renting out his homes. Fergus Wilson sets out ten rules online about who won’t be able to live in one of his properties. They also include families with children, people with pets, those who smoke, people on zero hours contracts, and single people.”-
This got me thinking about stereo-types and how quickly and wrongly he has assumed that a single person, wouldn’t be able to pay the rent, its completely outrageous and outdated. Also the perfect tenant doesn’t exist, nor does the perfect street. This piece is about particular ideologies which suggest that if you’re a certain person the world will smell of roses and this is what your street will look like. Unrealistic and not achievable. Why does someone of a certain profession become less worthy of living down your street because you once met a plumber who ripped you off? The whole article has the essence and feelings of social discrimination. Mr Wilson may aswell have altered his words and said ‘If you earn under £40k don’t apply.’
A government set on a real solution to the housing crisis would abandon ministers’ touching faith in the power of markets. Instead, it would invest in a huge increase in social housing, loaning money to housing associations, to get them building, and allowing councils to borrow money and build homes on their patch once again. This would require a change in attitudes towards public debt, and an understanding that council housing was a long-term investment – an asset, rather than a slightly embarrassing relic of a bygone age. Society accepts the situation we are in and its simply not good enough. Ending the housing crisis isn’t a science fiction plot, its an achievable milestone in which I would estimate the majority of society, basically everyone other than the 1% would be in favor off. The perfect street doesn’t exist, the homeless rates are higher than ever and so are poverty statistics. We need to open our eyes to the state of our country.
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