Money raised from Stamford artist's auctioned work will go to Ukrainian refugees
The piece was created at Korpfest street art festival on Red Lion Square
Last updated 16th Mar 2022
The latest work from a Stamford artist will sell at auction with all the proceeds going towards helping Ukrainian refugees.
Paul Kneen was at Korpfest over the weekend when he created the piece, which depicts a young girl letting her Ukrainian flag balloon fly away.
He was one of nine artists from the area that were invited down to the first street art festival held on Red Lion Square.
Paul says he's considering making smaller copies of the original piece to hand out to anyone that bids at auction, and getting more photo prints to sell to raise additional funds.
"I'd turn on the news like everybody else or listen to the radio and just hearing these devastating stories about what's going on over there... I've been toying with the idea of wanting to create something to pay tribute and respect to the Ukrainian people", Paul said.
"It's not a happy piece, but for me art isn't about just having something pretty on your wall it's about utilising the tools and skills that I have to be able to get a message out there."
"Our lives get interrupted by a news message that tells us that something else has gone over there or another building's been bombed, or a maternity ward. Other people have died and then we think 'oh, that's really sad', and then we carry on with our lives."
"For me, creating that kind of piece was a way of stopping people and making them think again."