Chewing Fun.

At any one time there is approximately 300,000 pieces of chewing gum stuck to the pavement on Oxford Street, London. Cleaning it up would cost about £30,000, but thankfully an artist called Ben Wilson. has come up with a novel way of dealing with the problem. He paints them.
I first noticed his work a few years ago, round where I live in Muswell Hill, after dropping a crisp packet and bending down to pick it up. It had landed next to a flattened piece of chewing gum which had something different about its appearence. It was full of colour. And on closer inspection it appeared to have peoples names on it, as if a dedication. Over the weeks more and more appeared over broadway. And sometimes if you were lucky, you'd be able to see him on his hands and knees painting them with tiny brushes. Ben Wilson has painted chewing gums from Barnet, where he was born, to Old Street in the centre of town.
Ben Wilson took some discarded waste and turned it into a canvas for beautiful art. The small size of the creations force you to really get close to them. You see people bending down on the street to admire them, which is why I like them so much. Ben Wilson makes art available for many to see, in their local surroundings, for free.