Danglin'

October 18, 2023 8:17 AM

In accordance with ancient tradition (and the Port of London Thames Byelaws) a bundle of straw is dangled from Millennium Bridge to warn shipping of work under the bridge (SLGuardian)
posted by atlantica (18 comments total)

Don't skip clicking the link toward the end of the story about the guy who paints the chewing gum stuck to the bridge and is upset that they are going to scrape up his art.
posted by jacquilynne at 8:23 AM on October 18, 2023 [2 favorites]

Seriously. The chewing gum art itself is not what I was expecting. I kind of feel bad for the guy because through his hard work he's lost touch with how ephemeral and discarded his canvas is. At least they've offered to preserve some of his work, but it's not like he shouldn't have known going into this that eventually someone would clean those wads of gum up (and maybe that was the original point?)
posted by RonButNotStupid at 8:43 AM on October 18, 2023 [1 favorite]

I've been worrying about what was going to happen to the chewing gum! I'm glad they'll keep some of it (and presumably he'll carry on painting after the bridge reopens and the stock of, um, canvases is replenished). It's something that delights me every time I cross the bridge.

I had thought the older pieces had already faded somewhat with time and footfall, but perhaps not.
posted by ManyLeggedCreature at 8:58 AM on October 18, 2023

This might not just be a London thing. I'm pretty sure I remember seeing them on bridges over the Clyde, too.
posted by scruss at 9:27 AM on October 18, 2023

I met the chewing gum guy at the Pittenweem Arts Festival this year. He was lying on the floor outside a shop, and it took me a while to realise what he was up to!
posted by benoliver999 at 10:38 AM on October 18, 2023 [1 favorite]

It looks like they are strapping it together (and dangling it) from the narrow axis, which seems structurally like the wrong way to do it, since it is typically (in the US, anyway) baled in the other direction, i.e. they are relying on the sheer strength of baling twine, which also runs along the long axis, to keep that rather heavy bale suspended in the air. If it were me, I think I'd strap it in both directions before dropping it over, or it might break apart. (And if it broke, it might or might not break apart on the way down, but still seems risky.)
posted by tempestuoso at 11:19 AM on October 18, 2023 [2 favorites]

Yeah I imagine the original "bundles of straw" weren't those machine made bales. There should be a grant in place to fund the training of a traditional straw bundler with an associated straw farm.
posted by Stonestock Relentless at 3:32 PM on October 18, 2023 [1 favorite]

Estuarial straw bundltry.
posted by Stonestock Relentless at 3:35 PM on October 18, 2023 [1 favorite]

Well, they already tried having a Thatcher run things and look where that got em?
posted by Insert Clever Name Here at 3:42 PM on October 18, 2023 [5 favorites]

I too have met and spoken with the chewing gum painter (he told me he paints the spots of dried gum because then he's technically not painting the bridge, so can't be accused of vandalism). I love seeing those tiny bright-coloured jewels on the grey steel under everyone's feet.
posted by Pallas Athena at 4:34 PM on October 18, 2023 [1 favorite]

Wow. I had no idea a person was painting chewing gum. Like...it would deteriorate anyway, right? I feel like making a stink about the bridge maintenance people cleaning away chewing gum is a good way to get people fined for making chewing gum art. I just can't believe I'm coming down on the side of bridge maintainers here and I am so curious how they plan to preserve even 100 of them.
posted by amanda at 5:20 PM on October 18, 2023

A minor distraction from the chewing-gum artist: just how old is this hay-bale legislation? In Britain, "ancient" could mean "before 1066."
posted by Halloween Jack at 6:20 PM on October 18, 2023 [1 favorite]

Surprisingly, this is pretty widely posted information if you live in communities along the Thames. There's a sign at the boat ramp in Twickenham, for instance, that has a graphic explaining that a straw bale hanging from a bridge means "reduced headroom" so slow down (here's that sign, from a different spot on the Thames). Some friends of mine are "boat people" and I remember smiling reading that sign recently while waiting for their dinghy to collect me.

It really does make sense on the Thames since the tidal draw is so profound. It's not unusual to pass far below a bridge heading one way, then on the way back feeling like you have to duck for cover.
posted by late afternoon dreaming hotel at 5:58 AM on October 19, 2023 [3 favorites]

So, according to that sign, even though they drive on the left, the British boat on the right? That seems confusing. What side of escalators do you stand on?
posted by jacquilynne at 6:37 AM on October 19, 2023

jacquilynne, in the UK you stand on the right on escalators.

In London, you stand on the right on escalators on the Tube or you die, usually from a mixture of being loudly harrumphed at and being trampled.
posted by Major Clanger at 9:57 AM on October 19, 2023 [3 favorites]

Also, the question of driving on the left but boating on the right led to an amusing fictional court case by A P Herbert (the originator of the 'cheque written on the side of a cow' story) about what would happen if a car travelling along a flooded road met a shallow-draught boat coming the other way.
posted by Major Clanger at 10:03 AM on October 19, 2023 [3 favorites]

Wow wow wow THAT'S what that guy was doing, painting chewing gum?! I saw him last week and wondered what he was up to.
posted by tangerine at 6:54 PM on October 19, 2023

Heh, my first thought on seeing the photo was that they were putting a lot of faith in that bale staying together with just a single strap around the middle. I shouldn't be surprised I wasn't the only one.

The guy painting pictures on chewing gum seems overly invested in art created on refuse. I would have thought he always expected them to be removed at some point.

Here in Australia, we drive cars on the left, boats on the right (loosely - you can go wherever you want but, if two vessels are approaching one another head-on, they must turn so they pass port-to-port (left) which amounts to the same thing. Escalators are where you stand on the left, as with walking on the footpath.
posted by dg at 8:56 PM on October 22, 2023