Painting the Roses Red for Grenfell Tower

I wrote and sang “Painting the Roses Red” in 2017 in the aftermath of the Grenfell Tower fire in London, a disaster that killed 72 people. I had lived in the residential tower block myself several years previously, and still lived in the local area when the fire occurred. The performance took place at the foot of the tower, which can be seen at the end of the video.

I utilise the title and tune of the song “Painting the Roses Red” from the Disney adaptation of Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderful, but subverts its lyrics and meaning.

The song and white flowers are offered in mourning and tribute to the victims and survivors of Grenfell Tower, but dipping them in red paint becomes a call for social change, a call to remain angry, and a visual reminder of bloodshed - amidst calls for charges of corporate manslaughter to be brought against those responsible for the management and refurbishment of the block. The Grenfell Tower Inquiry and police investigations continue.

• https://www.moca.taipei/en/ExhibitionAnd...
• https://vimeo.com/225319594