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Australian artists hijack outdoor advertising in capital cities as part of Bushfire Brandalism political art show

78 outdoor ads on bus stops around the country have been replaced by artwork from 41 creatives as part of the Bushfire Brandalism protest art project.

The posters were placed around Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne by workers wearing JC Decaux uniforms, in the hope they could do the work in daylight without alerting passersby or authorities.

In a statement the Bushfire Brandalism group said it was working in response to a lack of action from the Australian government on climate change.

“As a collective group of Australian artists, we have been driven to reclaim public advertising space with posters speaking to the Australian government’s inaction on climate change and the devastating bushfires,” the statement read.

“We do not accept that this situation is ‘business as usual’. We are making these issues visible in our public spaces and in our media; areas monopolised by entities maintaining conservative climate denial agendas. If the newspapers won’t print the story, we will.”

Mumbrella can confirm the work was not posted by JC Decaux staff. The outdoor company declined to comment for this story.

The event is being called ‘the nation’s largest unsanctioned art campaign’. The posters include art from a range of artists, including well-known street artist Scott Marsh.

Each artwork features a call to action and a QR code which links to a charity of the artist’s choosing. Other artists include: Georgia Hill, Tom Gerrard, Sarah McCloskey, Amok Island, Andrew J Steel, Blends, Callum Preston, Cam Scale, Damien Mitchell, Dani Hair, Dvate, E.L.K, Ed Whitfield, Fikaris, Fintan Magee, Heesco, Jeswri, Ghostpatrol, Leans, Lluis fuzzhound, Lotte Smith, Lucy Lucy, Makatron, Michael Langenegger, Peter Breen, The Workers Art Collective, Stanislava Pinchuk, The Lazy Edwin, Thomas Bell, Tom Civil, WordPlay Studio and Peter Breen.

Only a few of the 78 posters put up by the group still remain in place. The art was installed on Thursday January 30.

The campaign comes amid blowback aimed at Australian media outlets, including the Murdoch-owned The Australian and the Daily Telegraph, who have been called to question for their coverage of the bushfire crisis. The Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has also been questioned over his approach to the environmental disaster.

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