A mural depicting former prime minister Tony Abbott marrying himself has been removed from a wall in Redfern.
Created by artist Scottie Marsh, the artwork had adorned the side of a building on Redfern Street since 2017. At the time, Marsh told The Daily Telegraph it was his way of supporting the "yes" vote in the Australian marriage equality postal survey.
"I wanted to allude to Abbott's ego, that he's in love with himself yet he doesn't support the right for people to marry who they want," Marsh said.
"About 99 per cent of the reaction has been positive. A few homophobic dudes shouted out some stuff, but they don't get the satire of it."
Scaffolding appeared at the site on Friday, and by Saturday the building's entire façade – including the mural and its chipped-paint finish – had been freshly repainted.
The mural was painted on the wall of Hunter's Corner café, which shares the block with Coffee, Tea & Me and Ambour Hardware.
On a local Redfern residents' Facebook page, some users speculated the mural was removed because of ongoing building works.
According to the City of Sydney, the only approved development application for the property is a local heritage exemption allowing the roof and guttering to be replaced. It remains unclear whether the repainting was part of that work.
Online, most residents expressed disappointment over the mural's disappearance.
"Shame. It was a important political statement and landmark that attracted new patrons to the cafe and area," said one resident.
"That painting was an historic political landmark about marriage equality in Australia and supported the views of the local urban community," said another.
Others were relieved to see it gone.
"Thank god… I couldn't stand walking past his … face every day…. Gave me the heebie geebies," one user wrote.
It was not immediately clear to Gay Sydney Daily, which reported on the mural's removal, who owned the block. Gay Sydney Daily contacted the retail tenants and muralist Scott Marsh for comment but had not heard back at the time of publication.
This article has been syndicated with permission from Gay Sydney Daily, run by journalist Eliot Hastie.
Eliot Hastie is a senior news producer at Channel Ten, reporting on a range of general stories, specialising in foreign affairs and LGBTQ+ stories. He’s also a reporter for Gay Sydney News, where he covers LGBTQIA+ culture, politics and nightlife. He previously helped to build and launch ausbiz, Australia's only live streaming finance news channel, where he was also an executive producer and host. He has previously worked as a finance and business journalist for publications including Fintech Business, Real Estate Business and other Momentum Media titles. Eliot holds a journalism degree from the University of Westminster and brings experience in both broadcast and digital reporting. Contact Eliot: [email protected]
