the Chewing Gum Artist

This is a whole post dedicated to the chewing gun artist. The first time I saw him he was wearing his bright yellow, paint smeared, reflective jacket and was being 'moved on' by the police. Despite his bright jacket, they were worried that the passing pedestrians on Muswell Hill might trip over him as he crouched down over the ground. I walked by, assuming he was one of the areas (small) handful of extreme eccentrics.

Anyway, I was soon to learn that he is in fact an eccentric AND an artist, a unique one. He finds blobs of dried chewing gum on the ground (of which there are many), gently cleans the top, and paints brightly coloured and intricate pictures on them! It sounds a little disgusting, granted. But, I've grown to really like and respect the chewing gum artist. He spends his time taking blobs of the ordinary, mundane and slightly grim, and making them beautiful.

I really enjoy my brushes with the chewing gum artist. I was walking down the Broadway this week, head down (Londoner than I am), when I spotted one of his tiny materpieces on the ground - all electric blue and shiny and lovely, and I was really thankful for it. Then this morning, when I'd just clambered up to the top deck of the bus to go to work, along with a number of other bleary-eyed commuters, I spotted him down below. He was going to work, just like us. The difference was, he looked so happy about it! His face was actually beaming as he polished the top of a blob of gum, completely focused on the task ahead. This man is spending his days doing just exactly what he wants to do, and I think it's really inspiring!

When you're next in Muswell Hill, look down every so often as you walk, and you might spot a mini work of art by the chewing gum artist. I'll try and get some photos of his work on Facebook, watch this space...
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