Port-of-Spain Mayor Joel Martinez yesterday apologised to artist Dameon Agostini for the Corporation’s decision to dispose of his art pieces after seizing them from the area where he operated from at the Queen’s Park Savannah.
Agostini’s work was seized and thrown away last Wednesday by the City Police after several complaints were made to the Corporation.
In an interview yesterday after a meeting with the mayor, Agostini said he had accepted the apology and thanked members of the public for their support.
Agostini said he recovered four out of 15 pieces that were thrown away at the Corporation’s dump on Mucurapo Road, St James.
Martinez confirmed he granted permission to the police to go to the site after they received numerous complaints about the art work, but did not disclose the nature of the complaints or who made them. He said the officers told him they wanted to remove the stuff from the area, but he said he was unaware they intended to confiscate and dump it.
The mayor said he has a daughter who is an artist and supports the local industry, noting he intends to hold discussions to find a suitable location for Agostini.
“I was flabbergasted and upset (at the police action). Even vendors are human and should be treated humanely. I am not going advocate to pick up somebody’s stuff and dump it. That is not the process, we prefer to ask somebody to move. We shouldn’t treat people like that,” Martinez said.
Agostini thanked the public for their support and said he had ideas for how art could be used to beautify the city. He said he hoped other artists would also benefit from any initiative which the mayor planned for him.
Ozzy Merrique, who featured Agostini’s work in a short film titled “Horse,” which was featured in Green Screen - The Environmental Film Festival, showed up to offer support yesterday. Fellow artists and members of the public discussed the issue on social media yesterday, with the former saying they planned to hold a meeting to discuss how artists are treated.
Founder and director of Green Screen - The Environmental Film Festival, Carver Bacchus, said he supported Agostini and was calling on the city to find him a permanent space around the savannah or elsewhere.
“We are promoting the idea as much as possible. The issue is the value of art and how it is valued in our society. It is not only about Dameon. We want him (Agostini) to have a permanent space either there, or permission to stay, or an acceptable alternative and we would like the corporation and the Government to see how artists support the beautification of the city Port-of-Spain and make it a more enjoyable city,” he said.
Bacchus said the response on social media was “traumatic” and art had been sidelined.
“It is a big catalyst in my opinion for the standing up for the sector and how how important art is. Art should be involved in planning and development,” he said.
Meanwhile, social media users praised Agostini’s art pieces as “beautiful” or “amazing.” Some were shocked to learn that the pieces were destroyed and called the move “wicked. However, some also noted that vending was illegal and it was appropriate for the corporation to remove the items.
