Qubek’s mural, located behind the Islington Mill. Credit: https://www.instagram.com/qubekmanchester/
A striking new mural of a crumbling Donald Trump and laughing Simpsons character Nelson is turning heads in Salford.
The street art behind Islington Mill is the work of Salford artist Qubek who talked to Salford Now about his contributions to the cityscape.
How long have you been a graffiti artist?
“I started spray-painting when I was 18, a bit of graffiti here and there. After about six years I started painting in a more legal context. My fascination of the art form grew and grew from there. I’m 39 now. I paint for all different kinds of clients whether it be a corporate job or a private residence. It’s become a real job over 6-7 years.”
A video showing QUBEK’s work across Greater Manchester
How has Covid affected your work?
“It only affected it for a couple of weeks. It didn’t really affect my work. I was on my own, I was isolated. It gave me more time to work on personal paintings because I had more time. I try and balance my commercial work that pays for the bills and my personal paintings that I want to do.”
Qubek said he had wanted to paint this since the start of the pandemic.
What was the message behind the Donald Trump mural?
“The thought entered my head when I was watching footage of the election. I just imagined painting about trump. I like paintings that have a dialogue with them. Most artwork should be about current issues. The thought came about because people said Trump should be added to Mount Rushmore. I find it funny that the bully from the Simpsons, Nelson, is bullying the bully, Trump the big bully. I likened it to the poem, Ozymandias, about the Egyptian king that believed himself to be great but was seen as an awful ruler.”
Future projects from Qubek include a mural painted for the Salford cancer ward and a public painting area in Salford where people can freely paint whatever they would like.
Qubek’s work can be seen on instagram at: https://www.instagram.com/p/CFzOpPcBn2U/ . His company, Mural Life MCR can be found here: https://m.facebook.com/Mural-life-mcr-116041443636161/?modal=admin_todo_tour
Here is a map showing Qubek’s other works around Greater Manchester – https://salford-now-1.azurewebsites.net/2020/11/20/an-interview-with-greater-manchesters-banksy-qubek/?preview_id=125724&preview_nonce=0b5ab4404e&_thumbnail_id=125737&preview=true
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