Chewing-gum art

Is it possible to create cohesion among people by sticking them together with chewing-gum? A guy in Muswell Hill said yes, it is.

 

I saw this chap for months and months, lying on the pavement, every windy, snowy or rainy day, painting something. But what? And above all, why? When finally my curiosity exceeded my shyness, I had the chance to get to know the most soul-warming person I’ve ever met, Ben Wilson, also known as The Chewing Gum Man, as he introduces himself to me.

 

He’s giving shape to the most genuine, basic and profound idea of art: taking the harsh reality of life and transforming it into something beautiful, full of meaning and worthy of admiration.

 

He’s creating a chewing-piece-of-art, painting a miniature on a minuscule white spot that before was in somebody else’s mouth, then was discarded, and now regains life and sense through his paintings.

 

Art, he simply claims, can be just an instinctual form of self-expression and a way to make the world better by creating a profound connection between people.

 

And the demonstration of this is right there under my nose. During our conversation an awful lot of people stop to say “hi”, some of them commission the artist to paint a personalised chewing-gum with their names or a message for somebody special, others just watch him, dying with curiosity.

 

So, when you’re walking down the road, after a working day or going to the supermarket, just keep your eyes wide open! Trust me, Ben’s chewing-gums will stick in your mind!