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Sculptor Spends 2 Years To Build Knife Angel Out Of 100,000 Weapons, However Government Rejects It
There’s a giant 26-foot-tall Knife Angel sculpture in the UK, built entirely out of 100,000 donated knives. But besides the impressive statistics, it’s also a monumental sculpture built out of morbid necessity to remember the victims fallen to the increasing knife violence in the United Kingdom and to finally acknowledge that there is a real problem.
The beautiful sculpture’s creator, Alfie Bradley, has spent two years designing and building this work of art which features police donated knives that were actually used in violent crimes all over England and Wales, some of which even have the names of the victims engraved onto the blades. The rest came thanks to the help of British Ironwork Centre in Shropshire, which initiated an amnesty program “Save a Life, Surrender Your Knife” through which people could anonymously donate their knives to create this sculpture artwork.
Besides cleaning every knife of ‘biological material,’ Alfie also “had to blunt every single knife to make sure they’re not sharp anymore, and can’t create any damage,” Bradley told ITV News.
Bradley is currently running a petition to put the metal sculpture on Trafalgar Square in London to raise awareness of the issue, and you can show your support right here.
More info: British Ironwork Centre (h/t: demilked)
RELATED:
This 26-foot-tall Knife Angel sculpture is actually a monument…
For the victims fallen to the increasing knife violence in the United Kingdom
And it’s built entirely out of 100,000 donated knives
Some of which have actually been used in the crimes
The angel’s creator, Alfie Radley, has spent two years designing and building the sculpture
But the idea was rejected by the government…
as they thought it showed Britain in a bad light
But Alife is not giving up, and now he wants to put it on Trafalgar square in London to raise more awareness
And you can help him out by signing this petition
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What do you think ?
Jim Hubbard 8 years ago
Until people stop being childish and admit what the actual problems are, none of this will change. There is no such thing as "knife violence" or "gun violence" or "car violence". There are only violent human beings. You'll never get anywhere with combatting violence if you cannot even call it what it is - violent human beings.
Alfred E Newman 8 years ago
You're absolutely right Jim. Weapons do not kill people. People kill people, who use certain tools for their own purposes. Amen.
Load More Replies...
Mark Nicodemo 8 years ago
You cannot disarm innocent people of guns and then expect that criminals and violence will magically disappear. Instead of guns, they'll simply use another lethal weapon, and they have done exactly that.
John L 8 years ago
Mark, you took the words right out of my mouth. Violent people will always find a way to channel that violence. That's why innocent people need to have the Liberty to protect themselves.
Load More Replies...
Irén Pölös 8 years ago
Wow... amazing sculpture and a very powerful message. I do hope it'll be desplayed somewhere
jetmastergames 8 years ago
@EloiseHanson: It's bad enough that you are using an easily researchable name as your username while you try to scam people, but trying to scam people in the comments of an article highlighting the amount of fatal stabbings in the UK? that's disrespectful and sad, Please excuse my language, but you need to f**k off and get a damn job to raise your income, and stop trying to get other people to do it for you.
Load More Replies...
Max Blancke 8 years ago
So, when you get rid of all the knives, and all of the caustic substances, the violent people will probably just start using blunt objects. Or broken glass. Or petrol. Has it ever occurred to anyone in the UK that maybe the problem is not going to be solved by removing anything that can be turned into a weapon? Because that is essentially impossible. On the other hand, when you remove the violent people from the population, knives and car batteries become harmless but useful objects again.
Rachel Rosky 8 years ago
Now Britain's blaming knives for violence? Well, wake Parliament, they've got anti-knives legislation to work on.
DancingToMyself 8 years ago
In Italy, knife is a cold weapon. At least at the Court House and police.
Load More Replies...
Joe Dad 8 years ago
Take guns away. Evil will find another way. That way is knives. Take knifes away. Now they'll use belts or whtever. Knives ain't the problem
Philip Knight 8 years ago
Belts? If only. The weapon of choice is now drain cleaner - 95% sulphuric acid. Gang members reportedly nickname this "face melter", so there can be no doubt that understand the devastating life-changing injuries this will cause.
Load More Replies...
Sarah White 8 years ago
Just look at statistics and facts and you will see that guns are not nessescary. I no expert, but I live in Australia and it's far safer here than what I've seen of America. Of course, America is more popular and it's education system is worse, which could play into it. Not everything crappy that happens is because of guns, but making them illegal without a gun license is taking a step in the right direction. Criminals and violence won't magically disappear, but it will take a lot more effort to get a gun, which are more lethal than other easily accessible weapons (because, remember, guns are EASILY ACCESSABLE in America). Of course violent people are going to be violent, but maybe growing up without Bing surrounded by guns and people who use them, there will be less of a threat.
Rachel Rosky 8 years ago
I think its important to make the distinction between urban gun culture and rural gun culture here. The US is a hugely diverse demographic, many large cities with serious gun violence problems, but many areas of rural country with people whom use guns for hunting or recreation. The latter is not usually the demographic you have to worry about committing violent crimes because *usually* rural people raised with firearms are well educated in their use within that culture. This kind of gun culture is vastly different than urban gun culture in which *many* people who keep guns do so for protection, status/power symbols or criminal activity. Of course these are generalizations and there are exceptions, but its important to state the difference between the two demographics. Being raised around guns is not the problem, the problem is the intent.
Load More Replies...
Jim Hubbard 8 years ago
Until people stop being childish and admit what the actual problems are, none of this will change. There is no such thing as "knife violence" or "gun violence" or "car violence". There are only violent human beings. You'll never get anywhere with combatting violence if you cannot even call it what it is - violent human beings.
Alfred E Newman 8 years ago
You're absolutely right Jim. Weapons do not kill people. People kill people, who use certain tools for their own purposes. Amen.
Load More Replies... Mark Nicodemo 8 years ago
You cannot disarm innocent people of guns and then expect that criminals and violence will magically disappear. Instead of guns, they'll simply use another lethal weapon, and they have done exactly that.
John L 8 years ago
Mark, you took the words right out of my mouth. Violent people will always find a way to channel that violence. That's why innocent people need to have the Liberty to protect themselves.
Load More Replies... Irén Pölös 8 years ago
Wow... amazing sculpture and a very powerful message. I do hope it'll be desplayed somewhere
jetmastergames 8 years ago
@EloiseHanson: It's bad enough that you are using an easily researchable name as your username while you try to scam people, but trying to scam people in the comments of an article highlighting the amount of fatal stabbings in the UK? that's disrespectful and sad, Please excuse my language, but you need to f**k off and get a damn job to raise your income, and stop trying to get other people to do it for you.
Load More Replies... Max Blancke 8 years ago
So, when you get rid of all the knives, and all of the caustic substances, the violent people will probably just start using blunt objects. Or broken glass. Or petrol. Has it ever occurred to anyone in the UK that maybe the problem is not going to be solved by removing anything that can be turned into a weapon? Because that is essentially impossible. On the other hand, when you remove the violent people from the population, knives and car batteries become harmless but useful objects again.
Rachel Rosky 8 years ago
Now Britain's blaming knives for violence? Well, wake Parliament, they've got anti-knives legislation to work on.
DancingToMyself 8 years ago
In Italy, knife is a cold weapon. At least at the Court House and police.
Load More Replies... Joe Dad 8 years ago
Take guns away. Evil will find another way. That way is knives. Take knifes away. Now they'll use belts or whtever. Knives ain't the problem
Philip Knight 8 years ago
Belts? If only. The weapon of choice is now drain cleaner - 95% sulphuric acid. Gang members reportedly nickname this "face melter", so there can be no doubt that understand the devastating life-changing injuries this will cause.
Load More Replies... Sarah White 8 years ago
Just look at statistics and facts and you will see that guns are not nessescary. I no expert, but I live in Australia and it's far safer here than what I've seen of America. Of course, America is more popular and it's education system is worse, which could play into it. Not everything crappy that happens is because of guns, but making them illegal without a gun license is taking a step in the right direction. Criminals and violence won't magically disappear, but it will take a lot more effort to get a gun, which are more lethal than other easily accessible weapons (because, remember, guns are EASILY ACCESSABLE in America). Of course violent people are going to be violent, but maybe growing up without Bing surrounded by guns and people who use them, there will be less of a threat.
Rachel Rosky 8 years ago
I think its important to make the distinction between urban gun culture and rural gun culture here. The US is a hugely diverse demographic, many large cities with serious gun violence problems, but many areas of rural country with people whom use guns for hunting or recreation. The latter is not usually the demographic you have to worry about committing violent crimes because *usually* rural people raised with firearms are well educated in their use within that culture. This kind of gun culture is vastly different than urban gun culture in which *many* people who keep guns do so for protection, status/power symbols or criminal activity. Of course these are generalizations and there are exceptions, but its important to state the difference between the two demographics. Being raised around guns is not the problem, the problem is the intent.
Load More Replies...
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