Durban North resident makes dent in illegal graffiti tags
Dave Nielsen, a volunteer of Enviro Fixers Durban North, has not only been removing the tags but also painting over them and restoring the natural colour of the substations or boxes.
A COMMUNITY-DRIVEN initiative is slowly making a dent on illegal graffiti tags on substations, light poles, telephone boxes and walls in the Durban North area.
Dave Nielsen, a volunteer of Enviro Fixers Durban North, has not only been removing the tags but also painting over them and restoring the natural colour of the substations or boxes.
Nielsen said it was all about beautifying and uplifting the area.
In December, Nielsen tackled various hotspots along Umhlanga Rocks Drive and cleaned up and painted over the tags.
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“This is just one little project I’m doing under the banner of Enviro Fixers who are the real champions of this community. As someone who lives in the area, I often see these tags, and they aren’t pretty or impressive works of art. So I decided with the help of sponsors, the eThekwini Municipality and Enviro Fixers, to take back our streets by tackling illegal graffiti. I’ve cleaned up and painted over mini-substations, telephone boxes in Ward 36 and the wall at Bridgevale Park Nature Reserve,” he said.
While he has made significant progress in the area, Nielsen said one tagger has been persistent and vindictive in his vandalism.
“In some cases, as fast as we’ve cleaned up and painted over illegal tags, the very same tagger comes out and vandalises our work all over again. It is disheartening because so many times, it is just wanton vandalism. We have worked with street artists like Giffy who has painted some beautiful murals in the area. In the case of this individual, we’d like to identify him and stop him.
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“There is a way of doing things, and this is just not it. If they want to show off their art, we could find them a space suitable. When I say art, I mean mural-like works of art, not letters scribbled across things. I do feel everyone has a role to play, and if we could all champion one little thing with Enviro Fixers, we could make a big difference,” he said.
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