When I was walking Olga several days ago, we came across this fox stencil outside Sainsbury's in Kilburn. Remember when we first moved to London and I was finding these stencils all over the place? Many of them have since been painted over, but this one is still hanging around.
Here's a photo I took in July 2012 of the same stencil. It looked a bit pink back then -- I don't know whether it's faded now or if the color was simply an effect of direct sunlight.
In West Hampstead, one of the buildings just off the high street used to have an identical fox stenciled on its side. Here it is in July 2014:
But then someone painted the building. To their credit, they added a new fox to the wall after the paint job, but it's just not the same:
The old stencil was sharp and energetic, but this new one is just kind of blobby and sad.
So Manafort and Cohen have fallen, and both on the same day. Could this be the beginning of the end of Trump? Dare we hope?
I agree, the replacement fox isn't a patch on the other one which looks energetic and possibly on its way to dinner.
ReplyDeleteAt first glance I thought Sainsbury's window was a gigantic mural...
Alphie
We have those foxes in Sheffield too! I wonder what they mean. Perhaps it's the symbol of a new religion or maybe they are markers for gang territories. Perhaps urban foxes create them themselves - in the middle of the night when no one is looking.
ReplyDeleteThat would only be the beginning...there is Pence, and all of the Republicans who stand behind this charade...I love the mural and the remaining foxes. Any clues to the fox creator?
ReplyDeleteO, Happy Day , OH! Happy Day!! This was the BEST news day in America since Nov. 9, 2016. It feels unbelievably good to watch the TV reports, to listen to the exact wording of Michael Cohen's plea and Manfort's guilty-as-charged. Yes, this is the beginning of the end. O, Happy Happy Day.
ReplyDeleteWhoever did the original fox had a genuine affinity for the animals. It's sweet that Sainsbury's tried to keep the spirit of the fox alive, but it's very crude.
I sincerely hope this will be the beginning of Trump's downfall. The sooner the better before he can inflict more damage to this country.
ReplyDeleteI keep thinking that Trump's gonna pop a brain artery here which would save us all a lot of time and trouble.
ReplyDeleteThose fox murals are lovely although the replacement mural is not nearly as well done as the originals. I am hopeful that this is the beginning of the end for Trump, BUT... we need a Democratic takeover of Congress to make sure that the original intention of checks and balances holds true. Ms. Moon's comment made me laugh. Loved it.
ReplyDeleteI like the placement of the first fox as it looks like he's running on the ground.
ReplyDeleteHow weird, we have one on the wall outside of our coffee shop nearby but I haven't seen any others.
ReplyDeleteBriony
x
the original fox stencil is very well done, especially with the shading giving it a bit of dimension. I'm glad to see two of his minions taken down but not ready to celebrate yet. We'll see where this goes. I imagine Trump will try and pardon Manafort but not Cohen who threw him under the bus.
ReplyDeleteI love those fox stencils and since you have foxes visiting your neighborhood on a regular basis, they seem so appropriate.
ReplyDeleteYes, yesterday was a big day in legal news field. I've been daring to hope for the end of Trump's reign since day one but something tells me this won't have much affect.....yet. I'm waiting to hear from some of his loyal (i.e. blind) supporters. How are they going to spin their continued support now?
Here's something from over seven years ago but I felt it was interesting anyway (re the fox stencils): https://londonist.com/2011/02/fox-graffiti-in-north-west-london-mapped
ReplyDeleteAnd if you Google 'fox graffiti London' there is an amazing variety of images come up.
I think the news yesterday is only a small step, unfortunately. Trump will find some way to spin this into an eye-rolling series of tweets that will then become part of the chants in his next rally. His overall policies are not so very different from previous Republican administrations, although he pushes them to extremes; like them or not, they are conservative through and through. It's his strategies and approaches and childish gibbering that drive me up the wall. They're also the means he uses to appeal to his base, and that pushes him past childish to dangerous.
I'm not saying anything new here so I'll shut up and calm down :)
Very foxy store.
ReplyDeletesent over here by Robin at New Dharma Bums. Going to Vietnam and Cambodia next March and will ck out your posts from there, per Robin's sound advice. I'm a photographer and am contemplating just taking my iPhone and leaving the Leica and Fujifilm cameras at home.
ReplyDeleteNot terribly hopeful that Trump will be brought down my latest charges. He always manages to escape. Hoping, though, that when Mueller releases report, that info will do him in. Fingers crossed.
Alphie: Well, I suppose it's a mural of sorts!
ReplyDeleteYP: Really, the same stencils?! How weird. I thought they were just a NW London thing.
E: Well, that's true, but I think I could stomach even Mike Pence more than this blockhead. No idea who the fox creator is.
Vivian: I agree, it IS happy news. I'm not sure what the long-term effect will be, but the Republicans are losing any claim they can make to be the party of Christianity and family values.
Cheryl: Absolutely!
Ms Moon: I've had the same thought. The guy isn't young and he surely must be stressing. Besides, karma!
Robin: Yes, the mid-terms really matter!
Red: Yeah, the originals are very well-done stencils!
Briony: Interesting! Post a photo! :)
Ellen: Yeah, I'm sure at least one pardon is in the future. And maybe one for himself!
Sharon: Yes, they ARE appropriate for our area! I'm also watching to see how this gets spun. Fox News made a valiant effort to divert attention to the murder of a student in Iowa by an illegal immigrant. They kept that at the top of their page when literally every other media outlet was plastered with Trump's transgressions.
Jenny-O: Yes! I actually linked to that same map years ago when I first wrote about these stencils. Isn't it cool? Many of the ones on the map are now gone. I disagree about Trump's policies not being different from previous Republicans. The extremes are what MAKE them different -- the separation of families, the travel ban, the dismantling of the EPA (Richard Nixon, a Republican, originally signed some of our key environmental laws). Previous Republicans wouldn't recognize this carnival of an administration.
Catalyst: At least it doesn't smell like one. :)
Tara: Hello! I can definitely understand wanting to leave the big camera at home. I haven't been brave enough to do that -- and there are still things the big cameras can do, with macro and depth-of-field and exposures, that the iPhone can't. In the end I'm glad I brought mine. Just FYI. Have a great trip! I loved it over there!