Thursday 14 April 2011

For a glass of good wine, Stoke Newington and Holloway

Ever since I first saw it, I've been wondering about this glass of wine. What is it doing just next to a school? And why was the glass left intact when the rest of the wall was rather clumsily painted black? Could this have been the work of a street artist?


Location: Stoke Newington Church Street / Picture taken on: 01/04/2008

Then three years later and a couple of kilometres further west I spotted the same glass of wine (it used to be hidden behind a modern billboard) and this time there was something written underneath. However a search on the internet with the slogan "For a glass of good wine" didn't lead to any identification. I guess this ghost sign was promoting a local wine merchant and the logo would have been enough for people to recognize it. Maybe someone could cast some light on this little mystery.

For a Glass of Good Wine

Location: Holloway Road / Picture taken on: 06/04/2011

6 comments:

Jane said...

I can't believe didn't make this connection myself... thanks

Sam Roberts (Ghostsigns) said...

My theory on the Stoke Newington one is that there was once a billboard up there (good viewing from the old double decker 73 bus) and that the wall around it was 'black washed'. The billboard then came down and now the council have blacked out the whole wall leaving it much less interesting than with this wine glass on display. (This doesn't explain the black square in the top right corner though...)

Sebastien Ardouin said...

Sam, do you mean this glass of wine in Stoke Newington is now gone? What a shame! They could have used it to promote grape juice amongst school kids.
I agree, the small black square in the top right corner is intriguing.

Sam Roberts (Ghostsigns) said...

Yes, back in 2009 Hackney Council blackwashed all 'graffiti' along Church Street. There was a close call with this Banksy piece in respect to these efforts.

Sebastien Ardouin said...

I wouldn't have called the glass of wine a 'graffito.' As for Banksy's royal family, I think it added to the charm of Church Street. Both were certainly much better than the extremely ugly and depressing black walls people in Church Street have been left with. Clearly not the best decision by Hackney Council!

Sam Roberts (Ghostsigns) said...

There were some unconfirmed rumours that other Ghostsigns on the street would face the same fate. Here is something brief from the local freesheet N16, and a follow up plugging my site.