New Pispala fence mural vandalised after one month

A licensed mural painted on a fence in Tampere’s Pispala district has been vandalised after standing untouched for about a month, Yle reports.

The mural, created by art student Heidi Hallio along Pispalan valtatie, depicts the silhouettes of the Pispala and Pyynikki ridges. Tags and other marks have appeared at both ends of the fence.

Hallio said she did not know about the vandalism until Yle contacted her.

“I wanted to believe the fence would be left alone. At the same time, I was unfortunately convinced that something would eventually appear on it,” she said.

Hallio worked on the mural for seven long days, completing it in early July. She received the commission from Next Level Street Art, a company that arranges street art projects.

The fence belongs to the Maija-Kaisa housing company, which had become frustrated by repeated tags and spray paint. The licensed artwork was intended to help prevent further vandalism.

Hallio said she was most upset on behalf of the customer who commissioned and paid for the work. She said the personal disappointment was smaller because the project had given her valuable experience.

She has also received positive feedback about the mural, saying it had brought pleasure to passers-by, which was her goal.

Based on photographs she has seen, Hallio said repairing the damage would probably not take much time or cost much, provided no additional marks appear.

“Unfortunately, the fact that someone has already started this could encourage more vandalism,” she said.

Piritta Suominen, chief executive of Next Level Street Art, said the company had held preliminary discussions with the housing company about painting over the tags and applying graffiti protection.

The protective coating would allow future marks to be washed off the painted surface. Yle was unable to reach the housing company for comment.

Despite isolated incidents of vandalism, Suominen said most of the street art created in Pispala during the summer has remained untouched.