Campaign to repaint Keith Haring mural grows

Keith Haring’s last surviving mural in Australia was painted at the Collingwood Technical College in 1984. Since then, the mural has gradually fallen prey to signs of old age, which sparked a campaign by Arts Victoria in 2010 to conserve the work.

The Art Newspaper reported that Arts Victoria released a conservation management plan which called for “urgent conservation works” including an investigation of the materials used by Haring, cleaning, “selective retouching”, stabilisation and the application of a protective coating.

However, this has been met with much protest from art world figures, the local council and the Keith Haring Foundation, all who wish to see the famous mural repainted.

“We are in favour of repainting Keith’s murals… because it is more important that the work conveys Keith’s ideals and respect for the communities in which he worked, rather than preserve a brushstroke,” said Julia Gruen, executive director of the Keith Haring Foundation, in a statement made to The Art Newspaper.

Gruen also stated that it was Haring’s wish that the mural be a permanent fixture in Collingwood.

“It’s the only permanent thing that I did while I was in Australia,” late US artist Keith Haring once said, regarding the mural.

Artistic Director of the ACCA gave a radio interview for 774 ABC Melbourne where she provided agreement with Gruen’s view, stating that Haring had left clear instructions regarding the repainting of his works.

“We are not talking about a masterhand work—it’s not chiaroscuro—it’s very delineated and anyone with a capacity in line work could [repaint it] very competently,” she said, adding: “If we stabilise it now, it would just be a vapid, dilapidated [piece] instead of a lively work.”

The issue has sparked the interests of several arts leaders, who have written letters to Arts Victoria sharing their view that the mural should be repainted. Amongst them, the mayor of Yarra, Alison Clarke, also shares the same viewpoint.

“We know there are differing views about how the mural should be conserved, but we’ve come down on the side of supporting what the artist would have wanted,” she said.

Despite the controversy, an Arts Victoria spokesperson has spoken out about the proposed plan.

“It is important to note that the [plan] does not rule out overpainting the mural in the future should appropriate materials become available that would not destroy the original paint work,” The Art Newspaper quotes.

Keith Haring was a New York based artist who died in 1990. The Collingwood Technical College mural is one of only 31 known murals that have survived.