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Design of Birmingham HIV/AIDS Memorial revealed
The Birmingham HIV/AIDS Memorial (BHAM) was conceived by artist Garry Jones, Birmingham Pride co-founder Phil Oldershaw and owner of the Fox Pub, Andrew King, after watching Russell T. Davis’ It’s a Sin and deciding that there should be a dedicated mural in the city to commemorate those affected by AIDS and HIV within Birmingham.
Several fundraising activities were successfully implemented to fund the mural, while behind the scenes, designs and plans for it were being researched. Planning permission was submitted in August, showing further details of the proposed memorial.
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The site address for the BHAM is land on Hurst Street, outside the bubble tea store Happy Lemon City, which is the gateway to the LGBTQ+ village.
The location of the mural would previously have conflicted with the public highway and cycle lane as they are currently. However, work has already been approved to enhance the area, as previously reported in Scene magazine and, therefore, the mural will be fully pedestrianised.
As part of the planning permission, the design of the mural has also been revealed. Garry Jones explained that his initial idea for the mural was to show two figures comforting and supporting each other. His research, however, took him in another direction.
He said: “After researching imagery from the history of HIV and AIDS in Birmingham, a recurring and powerful symbol was the ‘red heart ribbon’. This symbol was adopted and used by the Birmingham World AIDS Day committee from 2008, the heart being chosen to represent love and to reference Birmingham’s position in the heart of England.
The mural will be roughly five metres high “to show that we will no longer be hidden or overshadowed”, and it will be formed of two interlocking metal heart ribbons. One of the ribbons will be finished in red; the other in contrasting rusted red. The memorial has been designed by Garry Jones, while the artistic impressions of what the mural might look like were created by Jacob Kirkwood.
Garry added: “The Memorial will commemorate those we have lost but who will never be forgotten. It will also be a symbol of hope for the future, at the heart of our city and for all to see. It will show how far we have come but remind us how far we still have to go to end stigma and discrimination.”
The artist chosen to produce the memorial is Black Country-raised Luke Perry, whose work includes the Stronger Together mural, which was unveiled in Victoria Square earlier this year to celebrate under-represented people.
Stronger Together was created as part of Sky Arts TV series Landmark, which showcases artists from across the UK as they compete in heats, unveiling local public art pieces. The winning artists from each heat will then take part in the final during which they will pitch for a national landmark which the overall winner will be commissioned to create. The final landmark will be on display in Coventry, which is UK City of Culture for 2021.
People can donate to the JustGiving page for the Memorial via this QR code.
