Street artist creates Spalding's tribute to Captain Sir Tom Moore
A street artist who has created Spalding’s own tribute to Captain Sir Tom Moore is hoping to do more.
Karl Barfoot, who lives in the town, spent around seven hours creating his masterpiece in a tunnel behind the Spalding Rugby Club building on St Thomas’s Road.
The tribute piece came after the area was cleared by Spalding based litter pickers – The Wombles of Spalding Common – leaving it prime for some art.
Karl said: “After the Wombles cleared the area, I asked them if I could do something with it and I was originally planning to do Albert Einstein there.
“Then, sadly Captain Tom passed away so I thought that it would be good to leave a tribute for him there. It’s Spalding’s way to remember him and what he did.
“I started working on it at around 6:30am in the dark and it took me around six or seven hours to finish.
“It was very wet in there so I think I might have to go back in the spring just to touch up a few bits.”
Karl, who has been creating street art and graffiti since he was around 13-years-old, has been amazed by the reaction to his work.
His post on Facebook showing the mural has now been shared more than 1,500 times on the site with people from all over the country commenting on his work of art.
Karl said: “I wasn’t expecting it to go mad like this but it’s good that a lot of people have seen it and like it.
“It’s good for the town too.
“I just would have liked to have done it in a more prominent area.”
Karl is now hoping that this could be the gateway to creating more street art in the town to brighten up a few areas.
He said: “If someone gave me permission I would love to do it elsewhere.
“I would like to do a variety of things - in Peterborough there is a legal street art wall where I have done a few bits and it would be awesome to have one in Spalding.
“Hopefully this is a push in the right direction to getting one.”
Although Karl has created works in Peterborough, he mainly focuses his efforts on canvas or private work in people’s homes.
He is now hoping that people respect his work in the tunnel.
He said: “I hope it will stay there but I can guarantee that someone will vandalise it.
“Although it’s out of my hands I’d be gutted if that happened.
“I just hope that people respect Captain Tom and leave it alone - people have been saying it’s awesome.”
