For years, graffiti artists have been using a warehouse in Long Island City in Queens as a canvas, known as 5Pointz. But all of their work is now gone, thanks to the owner who whitewashed the entire building.
The New York Times reports that the building, which had the work of some 1,500 artists received a new paintjob overnight, leaving people shocked Tuesday morning. “We are supposed to be the vandals, but this is the biggest rag and disrespect in the history of graffiti,” Marie Cecile Flageul, an unofficial curator for the site, told the Times.
The building is going to be demolished by owners Jerry and David Wolkoff and there are plans to turn the site into a $400 million development with luxury apartments. According to The New York Post, supporters of 5Pointz have tried to save the building, even hoping to get it declared a landmark.
“It’s vandalism from the guys who want the building back,” Flageul told the Post. “This is a tragedy. It’s a signature Jerry Wolkoff move. If things don’t go his way, he takes them in his own hands. This is artistic murder.”
Wolkoff has defended his actions as the owner. He said he had the legal right to do it and, hard as it may seem for the 5Pointz supporters, he said he cried as the artwork was removed.
“I had tears in my eyes while I was doing it. In my new building I’ll have walls for them to express their aerosol art,” Wolkoff explained.
The Times reports that there will be a vigil at the site on Tuesday night. Even Banksy, who recently worked in New York, voiced support to save the art.
image: Wikimedia Commons
