Chalk Beggars

cson

You know the kind. The lads on their knees in various awkward places of Dublin (corner of westmoreland st for example) and other cities in the country carefully colourfully chalking some poetic spiel they saw in a mystic meg column onto the ground.

Given the recessionary tomes we live in it made me wonder; how do those lads make a living off their begging? Surely they spend most of what they make on shagging chalk? Or is their some benevolent chalk dispensary somewhere giving it gratis?

If not I fear for the livelihood of our chalk beggar brethren.

Fishooks12

At least they're doing something to try and earn your money

Not like the flutes who just sit there and expect you to pay for their gear

Killer Pigeon

"Woops!"

*Smuggy* *Smuggy* *Smuggy*

Tonyandthewhale

I prefer the beggars who just sit there doing nothing, at least they don't get in your way taking up a huge portion of a busy street to write innane drivel on the ground.

cocoshovel

I haven't seen people do that in years, like a good 10 at least. When I did see it, it was just knacker kids doing it.

Chuck Stone

There's a guy I've seen in Cork who unrolls a big picture of various Irish and world celebs and politicians Irish dancing (he plays the riverdance theme) and he pretends he's just finishing it off.

The man has probably made a fortune from it.

cosmicfart

what wrong with playing Hopscotch?

foxyboxer

Meh, like those fellas standing around pretending to be statues.

Job Description: Must be good at standing still.

Bobby Baccala

Next time i see one of those im gonna go up píss all over it and then kick the lad that drew it in the head.

Duke Leonal Felmet

Chalk Beggars.

Heh.

It's funny because it's not me.

efb

Are buskers beggars then?

xzanti

Does anyone ever actually see one of these masterpieces in the making?? Any time I see them they're always complete, with the artist just 'fine tuning' it, shading in a few places etc.. also they're usually done on a huge sheet of paper and you can see the tape around the edges sticking it to the ground..

Johro

foxyboxer wrote: »

Meh, like those fellas standing around pretending to be statues.

Job Description: Must be good at standing still.

No, that's a job requirement, not a description. 'Must be capable of taking shite from public' is also a job requirement. Wouldn't like it meself.

Duke Leonal Felmet

efb wrote: »

Are buskers beggars then?

If they are not, there is a fine line between them.

Temptamperu

I walk straight across there art work.

Like a boss infact :cool:

foxyboxer

Chuck Stone wrote: »

There's a guy I've seen in Cork who unrolls a big picture of various Irish and world celebs and politicians Irish dancing (he plays the riverdance theme) and he pretends he's just finishing it off.

The man has probably made a fortune from it.

He's moved onto a Michael Jackson mural now. So 2009.

xzanti

xzanti wrote: »

Does anyone ever actually see one of these masterpieces in the making?? Any time I see them they're always complete, with the artist just 'fine tuning' it, shading in a few places etc.. also they're usually done on a huge sheet of paper and you can see the tape around the edges sticking it to the ground..

i have yeah

newmug

Are they beggers though? I always draw the distinction thus: If they're doing it to pay for drugs, drink etc., then they're begging. If they're financially ok and are just doing it for the craic or charity etc., then they're not beggers.

Johro

To be fair I've not come across anyone begging for chalk. Yet.

stupidusername

Fishooks12 wrote: »

At least they're doing something to try and earn your money

Not like the flutes who just sit there and expect you to pay for their gear

but the guys with the flutes have recorded their music, even if you don't like it, they've put effort in to it. and obviously some people like it enough to buy it.

Tonyandthewhale wrote: »

I prefer the beggars who just sit there doing nothing, at least they don't get in your way taking up a huge portion of a busy street to write innane drivel on the ground.

I only ever see one around Dublin, but when he's at Molly Malone at the top of Grafton St, he takes up half the footpath, and then there's always eejits gawping at him in a circle around it, taking up more space.

foxyboxer wrote: »

Meh, like those fellas standing around pretending to be statues.

Job Description: Must be good at standing still.

They piss me off. it's not impressive. there's one that used to stand on Grafton St, but whatever it was about that spot, he used to have pigeons coming to sit on him all the time. it was hilarious, him trying to move in all his stuff to get them off...sitting on his head and all

xzanti wrote: »

Does anyone ever actually see one of these masterpieces in the making?? Any time I see them they're always complete, with the artist just 'fine tuning' it, shading in a few places etc.. also they're usually done on a huge sheet of paper and you can see the tape around the edges sticking it to the ground..

Yeah a few times, they do actually do it.

Johro wrote: »

No, that's a job requirement, not a description. 'Must be capable of taking shite from public' is also a job requirement. Wouldn't like it meself.

yeah, that's also a requirement of a lot of retail jobs.

Temptamperu wrote: »

I walk straight across there art work.

Like a boss infact :cool:

Nice. I would, if they were more in my way.

MyKeyG

xzanti wrote: »

Does anyone ever actually see one of these masterpieces in the making?? Any time I see them they're always complete, with the artist just 'fine tuning' it, shading in a few places etc.. also they're usually done on a huge sheet of paper and you can see the tape around the edges sticking it to the ground..

Yeah that's true. It's like yer man on Grafton street that forms the reclining dog out of sand. I've never seen him arrive with a bag of sand dump it on the ground and then start sculpting, you just see him shaving of little bits here and there. It also begs the question why he never did any other animals? It was always that same flippin dog and while we're on the subject what sort of gombeen would throw loose change into a hat for a dog made of sand.

No the lad with the marionette that used to look up girls skirts and run off with your shopping bag now he was the dogs b*ll*cks. And by that I mean a real dog. I don't think the sand dog had testicles.

stupidusername

MyKeyG wrote: »

Yeah that's true. It's like yer man on Grafton street that forms the reclining dog out of sand. I've never seen him arrive with a bag of sand dump it on the ground and then start sculpting, you just see him shaving of little bits here and there. It also begs the question why he never did any other animals? It was always that same flippin dog and while we're on the subject what sort of gombeen would throw loose change into a hat for a dog made of sand.

No the lad with the marionette that used to look up girls skirts and run off with your shopping bag now he was the dogs b*ll*cks. And by that I mean a real dog. I don't think the sand dog had testicles.

Again, I've seen this guy starting off too. and while I'm not impressed by what he does, just the other day I saw he'd done something different to the normal dog, though I can't remember what it was.

cson

Johro wrote: »

To be fair I've not come across anyone begging for chalk. Yet.

I think that's what I'll do the next time I see them; drop a few sticks of chalk into his cup. He'd appreciate that I think, the working man's contribution.

cml387

I saw someone do out a mandala on the ground once.

Google it

Duke Leonal Felmet

Good chalk beggars:

http://www.google.ie/imgres?q=drawing+on+footpath+sidewalk+holding+up+building&hl=en&safe=off&biw=1280&bih=643&gbv=2&tbm=isch&tbnid=N8dEUnWafqt5pM:&imgrefurl=http://3doscar.blogspot.com/&docid=Ib2dQdCq5ZWIwM&w=320&h=220&ei=7SmTTvOCLYjB8QO0suAN&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=178&vpy=180&dur=861&hovh=176&hovw=256&tx=165&ty=89&page=2&tbnh=125&tbnw=172&start=18&ndsp=19&ved=1t:429,r:0,s:18

http://www.google.ie/imgres?q=drawing+on+footpath+sidewalk+street+art&hl=en&safe=off&gbv=2&biw=1280&bih=643&tbm=isch&tbnid=zZLx3IPWu_IFaM:&imgrefurl=http://www.moillusions.com/2006/03/more-3d-sidewalk-drawings.html&docid=TMs2ODEsAHNKrM&w=450&h=484&ei=KSqTTovYDcjF8QPu4tg5&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=398&vpy=134&dur=635&hovh=233&hovw=216&tx=105&ty=117&page=1&tbnh=142&tbnw=163&start=0&ndsp=18&ved=1t:429,r:1,s:0

Oranage2

The lad on grafton street that does the stupid poem has to be the worst -

He writes the same stupide poem and goes mad if you walk on - Well sunny Jim you cant just take up half a pedestrian walkway and not expect somebody to walk on it.

Wertz

Recessionary Tomes eh? That one by Shane Ross was pretty good.


Seriously though, at least these chalk artists are doing soemthing for their pittance (which you are not obliged to contribute to despite being able to enjoy it as you pass) rather than sitting on a blanket waving a styrofoam cup...

MyKeyG

stupidusername wrote: »

Again, I've seen this guy starting off too. and while I'm not impressed by what he does, just the other day I saw he'd done something different to the normal dog, though I can't remember what it was.

Did he give him testicles?

entropi

stupidusername wrote: »

Nice. I would, if they were more in my way.

Oranage2 wrote: »

The lad on grafton street that does the stupid poem has to be the worst -

He writes the same stupide poem and goes mad if you walk on - Well sunny Jim you cant just take up half a pedestrian walkway and not expect somebody to walk on it.

There's another one of them now btw, outside Centra at O'Connell Bridge. Does it on a Saturday from what I've seen.

Waste of space and time tbh. I feel great looking at it when it rains:pac: