Home covered in graffiti to catch council's attention
Tuesday August 31 2010
A COUPLE WHO commissioned to have their home graffitied with street art in one of Carlow's most picturesque villages say it was done to get the attention of Carlow County Council.
Residents of the idyllic village of St Mullins are up in arms over the artwork which contains images of drugs use on the old sawmills by the riverbank which was once part of the Odlum's Mill.
Rene and Jolanda Groot, who bought the old mill in 1993, say the move is a last ditch effort to get the attention of Carlow County Council who placed a compulsory purchase order on the building more than 10 years ago.
'It's the only reason we are doing this,' said Jolanda Groot. 'We are stuck here. The council won't complete the CPO and we can't sell the place to anyone else. We can't move on and it's killing my husband bit by bit.'
Street artist Tinkicker from New Ross was given permission by the couple to paint the entire side of the old sawmill which is three metres high and 20 metres wide and he has worked daily for the past two weeks on the painting.
The work features images of Bob Marley and Tupac Shakur smoking cannabis and an image of Tinkicker with magic mushrooms growing out of his head.
'Bob Marley is always known for smoking cannabis and mushrooms have been growing organically in St Mullins for thousands of years, I'm not encouraging drug use,' he said.
Pictured also is a clown wearing a wig in the Irish colours and holding a NAMA balloon.
Jolanda moved to St Mullins with her husband and two daughters Margriet and Dorien when she was 33 and now at the age of 50 she says she's ready to move on but is frustrated by the lack of response from Carlow County Council.
The order was put in place by the Council with the intention to transform St Mullins in to a must see tourist destination in the south-east, as it is home to the burial grounds of St. Moling and Art McMurrough Kavanagh, the famous King of Leinster.
Gardai in Graiguenamannagh visited the Groot home after receiving a number of complaints from locals but the family say they are the current owners of the property and are not breaking the law.
When contacted no one from Carlow County Council was available to comment on the matter.
