A group of street artists have paid tribute to the people working on the frontline of the coronavirus crisis with a colourful, oversize mural depicting a superhero in protective gear.
The painting, which recently appeared in a former industrial yard in Helsinki’s Vallila district, was the work of four artists including Aku Djedidi of Molotow Finland, a company which has long promoted street art in the city and sells spray paints and felt pens.
“We wanted to bring some positivity and remember those people who are doing grassroots work and who rarely get thanked for it,” Djedidi told Yle.
The street artist said his partner works in the care industry and he therefore knows how much work is being done to try and get through the current epidemic.
The work features a woman in surgical gloves and a facemask, with a Superman logo visible underneath her protective gown.
The Konepaja yard in Vallila is a popular area for graffiti with new images appearing regularly, but Djedidi expects this mural to stay for some time.
“Until summer at least,” he said.
Tributes to healthcare staff and other frontline workers during the coronavirus pandemic have become a common motif for street artists in many cities in Europe and the US.
