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Ad agency apologises after painting over iconic mural with Mother! movie promo

Rob Moran
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A Melbourne advertising agency has apologised to residents of Sydney's inner west, after it painted over an iconic Newtown mural with a promotional ad for Jennifer Lawrence's upcoming movie Mother!

The agency, Apparition Media, based in Melbourne's Fitzroy, was criticised by locals for defacing the prominent It's like a jungle sometimes artwork, long-featured on a heritage-listed building on Enmore Road.

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Ad agency apologises after painting over iconic mural

A Melbourne advertising agency has apologised to residents of Sydney's inner west, after they painted over an iconic Newtown mural.

The ad for the upcoming Paramount Pictures film, which was painted at the weekend, was quickly covered in protest graffiti saying: "No respect".

After receiving complaints from locals, the Inner West Council said it "did not approve the advertisement", which is prohibited in heritage areas, and that the matter was being investigated by the Council's Compliance Section.

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In a Facebook post responding to the backlash, Apparition Media apologised for its "ignorance".

"Hey Newtowners, let's just start by saying we're sorry to you all and you've been heard loud and clear," the agency wrote in the post.

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It also said it had been in touch with the mural's original artist, Colin Bebe, in an attempt to amend the error.

"He told us the history of the mural and what it represents. After chatting at length about this, and our common journey of losing someone to suicide, he has asked that we collaborate on the new mural and become part of the story," the agency wrote.    

"It shows the mark of the man that, despite us painting over the mural without approaching him first and despite the public outcry from you all, he wants our team member to tell the story of her brother within the new artwork - in his words, 'This is all just another chapter in the story of this mural,' " the post continued.

The agency, which calls itself a "collective of sign writers ... not a faceless corporate entity", added it would be working with the artist to restore the original mural, while also using "this opportunity to raise money for a local charity of the artist's choice to raise awareness around youth suicide".

A spokesperson for the agency told Fairfax Media the first stage of restoration would be complete "over the next few days", with the finished mural to be "very close to the original with a few small additions to the story".

 

Hey Newtowners, Let's just start by saying we're sorry to you all and you've been heard loud and clear. We managed to get in touch with the original designer/artist and he is a ripping bloke. He told us the history of the mural and what it represents. After chatting at lengths about this, and our common journey of losing someone to suicide, he has asked that we collaborate on the new mural and become part of the story. It shows the mark of the man that despite us painting over the mural without approaching him first and despite the public outcry from you all, he wants our team member to tell the story of her brother within the new artwork - in his words "This is all just another chapter in the story of this mural." We have expressed our regret for painting over it and apologised for our ignorance. We are going to work together to restore the original mural in the coming weeks. In the meantime, he has asked that we finish our mural. He is supportive of what we do and understands that we are a collective of sign writers who employ artists to do what they love doing - we are not a faceless corporate entity. After we complete the final stage of this mural, we are going to restore the original mural in collaboration with the artist and we have agreed to cover all costs, assist him in painting it and get the story of the mural out there to as many people as we can. We are also going to use this opportunity to raise money for a local charity of the artist's choice to raise awareness around youth suicide. Again, we apologise to the Newtown community for painting over this much loved mural, hopefully something good will come out of all of this. Before posting this, we gained approval for the artist to do so. From the artists and creators of Apparition Media

A post shared by Apparition Media (@apparitionmedia) on

The Inner West Council said its investigation into the matter would continue regardless.

"Like many members of the public, [the council] was very disappointed to see the iconic artwork painted over," a spokesperson said.

"While council is pleased to see positive action to reinstate the iconic mural, the investigations by Council's Compliance Section will continue and, if a breach is detected, appropriate regulatory action will be taken."

Paramount Pictures did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The fiasco is the second movie marketing stunt to draw criticism in the past week.

A marketing campaign for the new adaptation of Stephen King's It, which saw red helium balloons tied to sewer grates across Sydney, was slammed by environmentalists as a threat to local wildlife.

Greens senator Peter Whish-Wilson, the party's spokesperson for Healthy Oceans, called on Village Roadshow to end the campaign, saying the balloons would end up in the ocean and "be swallowed by sea-birds, dolphins, whales and turtles".

He also called on the NSW Environmental Protection Authority to fine the film promoter.

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