2B HUMAN : STUART SEMPLE

Stuart Semple is a multidisciplinary British artist working across painting, sculpture, happenings, technology and activism. He is well known for his sociologically engaged works that often discuss youth politics, accessibility and democracy.

ABOUT STUART SEMPLE

In 2018 Semple’s campaign against anti-homeless bars on benches inspired Bournemouth Council to remove them. He has now recreated the bench as a work of art.

Semple has rallied against hostile design in his art for some time. In this artwork he uses cuddly toys to create a new bench that will banish the memories of Bournemouth Borough Council’s ‘design crimes’. 

After the rapper and pal Max Murdo went down to Bournemouth to remove them – and a 27,000-strong petition also shouted about how they blocked rough sleepers from lying on them – the council finally caved in and removed the bars. 

In the wake of the campaign, Semple set up hostiledesign.org to allow others to call out other design crimes in public, even selling stickers to highlight offending items.

Semple was keen to use his victory of the removal of the bars to transform the public perception of how designs are used inclusively. He invited locals to his Love Bench event, encouraging the local community to turn the seats into art. 

“I create art all over the world to make public spaces a bit happier and more inclusive… it is interesting how human this debate has become – it started off as an architectural debate and has ended with people talking on the streets about how we treat others.”