Giant Greta Thunberg mural to watch over San Francisco's downtown

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/nov/08/greta-thunberg-mural-san-francisco

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Project by Argentinian artist Andrés Iglesias is poised for completion next week in eco-conscious city

San Francisco, a city that prides itself on its eco-consciousness, will soon have a giant likeness of Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg gazing upon its downtown, reminding residents to respect the planet.

The Argentinian muralist Andres Iglesias, who signs his art with the pseudonym Cobre, is expected to complete the project in the central Union Square neighborhood by next week, SFGate reported. Cobre also painted a revered mural of the comedian Robin Williams that has since been demolished.

“Climate change is real,” Cobre told SFGate. “This girl Greta is awesome and she knows what she’s doing. I hope with this mural people will realize we have to take care of the world.”

The environmental not-for-profit group One Atmosphere reportedly reached out to Cobre after the mural of Williams was slated to come down and just as Cobre was searching for a building for his next project. The organization is said to be supplying all the paint for the project.

It’s not the first time Thunberg has been immortalized in street art. Earlier this year, the UK-based aerosol artist Jody Thomas painted a 50ft portrait of the teenager on the face of the historic Tobacco Factory in Bristol.

“She’s very much in the limelight, very current, very contemporary and she’s obviously clearly leading a very, very important issue which affects all of us on the planet,” Thomas told the Huffington Post.

At 16, Thunberg has already reached the exalted status of Nobel peace prize nominee, leader of a movement to reclaim the planet for future generations, focus of Donald Trump’s mockery, and hero among progressives and young people.

In September, Thunberg became the face of a vast, coordinated strike to protest against government inaction on the climate crisis. Demonstrations spanned an estimated 185 countries in one of the largest environmental protests in history.

“You have stolen my dreams and my childhood with your empty words. And yet I’m one of the lucky ones. People are suffering. People are dying. Entire ecosystems are collapsing. We are in the beginning of a mass extinction, and all you can talk about is money and fairy tales of eternal economic growth. How dare you!” Thunberg said, addressing the United Nations Climate Action Summit.

“My message is that we’ll be watching you,” she said.