Page 8 - Urban Kapital Magazine Autumn 21

WRITER-ARTIST
TEAM UNVEIL ICONIC COP
IMAGE SLAMMING BIG OIL
// STRIKING NEW ARTWORK POINTS DAMNING
FINGER AT FOSSIL FUEL CARNAGE
On 27th October the acclaimed
British-Trinidadian visual artist Zak Ové
(pictured bottom right) and the Costa
award-winning Caribbean-born novelist
Monique Roffey (Bottom left) released a
scorching poster evoking the return of
paradise after the collapse of
“Babylon”, represented as the oil industry
and the powers that stoke it. (Top image)
Created by XR Writers Rebel, the image
forms part of their street presence during
the COP summit in Glasgow, and will
appear on posters around the UK and on
social media.
Writers Rebel is a group of writers al-
lied with Extinction Rebellion with the
aim of putting literature in the service of
the environment. www.writersrebel.com
Liz Jensen from XR Writers Rebel says:
“At Writers Rebel we believe that culture
can be a dynamic force for change. This
project embodies that belief. We hope that
this will become one of the iconic images at
COP26 and beyond, and serve as a
reminder that we can only be good
ancestors if those in power act now,
decisively, to keep oil where
it belongs: in the ground.”
The poster was launched the day
before the CEOs of ExxonMobil, BP,
Chevron and Shell are questioned In the
MAGAZINE // 08
US Congress about what members call
a “long-running, industry-wide campaign
to spread disinformation about the role of
fossil fuels in causing global warming”.
The latest WHO report warns starkly:
“The burning of fossil fuels is killing us…
causing millions of premature deaths every
year through air pollutants, costing the
global economy billions of dollars annually,
and fueling the climate crisis.”
Monique Roffey says:
“Just 90 companies around the world are re-
sponsible for two thirds of our greenhouse
gases. Coal, oil and natural gas are being
produced by 83 of these companies.
The oil industry has been destroying our
planet since the late 19th century. We’re at
Code Red for humanity. Big oil has to stop.”
Monique Roffey is the award-winning
author of seven works of fiction and non-fic-
tion. Her latest novel, The Mermaid of
Black Conch, won the 2020 Costa Book
of the Year. www.moniqueroffey.com
Zak Ové is a British-Trinidadian visual artist
who works in sculpture, film and photogra-
phy to reclaim old world
mythologies in new world source materials
and technologies. www.vigogallery.com
The poster was designed by Ebon Heath -
an acclaimed graphic designer based in