Art / Street Art
New mural depicts Rishi Sunak clapping while nurses queue at food bank
Ahead of a nationwide nurses strike on Thursday, a new mural has been painted in south Bristol to raise awareness of the fact that nurses are increasingly having to rely on foodbanks.
The mural by street artist SledOne depicts NHS nurses queuing in front of a food bank while prime minister Rishi Sunak claps.
The words on the mural painted with the help of Upfest on an empty shopfront on North Street in Bedminster read: “Don’t just clap, give nurses fair pay.”
is needed now More than ever
SledOne at work on North Street on Wednesday – photo: Martin Booth
The mural is the latest work by Bristol-based digital activists If Not Now, the team behind behind the 2016 mural of Boris Johnson and Donald Trump kissing on Stokes Croft.
It is part of a new creative campaign called Print To Power which brings together art, activism and politics in support of NHS nurses striking for fair pay.
Marylou Faure, Holy Moly, Darren Cullen (also known as Spelling Mistakes Costs Lives) and If Not Now in-house designer Daniel Jennings have each been commissioned to design a poster to promote support for striking nurses.
If Not Now’s new art activism initiative Print To Power aims to galvanise support for the NHS nurse strikes and raise money for the RCN’s Strike Fund – image: If Not Now
If Not Now co-founder and director, Hanna Henshall, said: “We’re proud to launch our new art activism initiative Print To Power to galvanise support for the NHS nurse strikes and raise money for the Royal College of Nursing’s Strike Fund.
“Like most people in the UK, the NHS holds a very special place in my heart and has helped many of my family members and friends in their time of need.
“It’s heartbreaking that nurses are increasingly having to rely on food banks to get by. Rishi Sunak should be offering fair pay and better working conditions. Claps don’t pay the bills.
“We know the public stands shoulder to shoulder with nursing staff, who for years have been forced to accept real terms pay cuts on top of worsening conditions for both staff and patients.
“They’ve cared for us. It’s time we cared for them.”
Main photo: Martin Booth
Read next:
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- Trump and Johnson in Stokes Croft kiss
- Upfest 2023 cancelled due to rising costs
- Maybe Paints is definitely going places
- Acerone and Sepr are all loved up
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