A BRIGHT new mural that has been defaced by vandals with excrement was not given a protective coating to prevent damage.
Shortly before Christmas, the Woosehill underpass was freshened up thanks to mural artist Dean Tweedy who has previously painted murals in Lower Earley. Within days of the work ending, graffiti artists used the pictures as a canvas.
The scrawl include several words unrepeatable in a family newspaper and crude drawings of phallus.
The yobs also smeared the walls with excrement.
Readers have been in touch to complain that the £10,000 work has been vandalised.
One, who did not wish to be named, said: “Those responsible are a disgrace to the town”, while Pam Small wrote: “Wokingham youths are obviously not like those in other areas – some of ours are vandals, disrespectful, nasty, nauseating people.
And it turns out that Wokingham Borough Council, which commissioned the work, did not apply a protective layer to the artwork, blaming weather conditions.
Cllr Angus Ross, executive member for environment, told The Wokingham Paper: “We couldn’t apply the protective layer when we wanted because weather conditions were too damp and it wouldn’t have set.
“But we will do this when we remove the graffiti in the new year.”
And Cllr Ross said that the graffiti taggers needed to be caught.
He said: “This vandalism is a criminal offence prosecuted by the police, so we ask our residents to be vigilant and report any incidents to them.”
But Mrs Small was not happy. She said: “The council did not appear to have any plans in place to protect this £10,000 investment other than a wing and a prayer and yet they are constantly asking us how they can save money … it amounts to £10,000 down the drain.”
Cllr Lindsay Ferris, leader of the Liberal Democrats, said: “How disappointing.
“Someone spends their time to put a mural together and for the sake of a protective coat it may well have been badly damaged. Perhaps this should have been thought through better as it was always understood that a protective coat was required and that this may not be able to be done in cold weather.
“We hope the Council will take this into account should we have a proposal for another mural somewhere else in the borough and time things in the future so that a protective coat can be provided in good time to prevent a repeat.
“The outcome is that council tax payers will pick up the bill to clean the mural, unless the culprits can be found and made to contribute to costs.”
Dean Tweedy, from Marvellous Murals, said: “We apologise for not being able to finish the mural but we will definitely return in the Spring when the weather improves and repair any damage, finish the mural and apply an anti-graffiti varnish which should hopefully protect it for a long time.”
