Graffiti artists ‘should never risk their lives’
Grieving parents of ‘beautiful son’ killed on rail track issue warning to others
THE parents of a graffiti artist who was killed by a train in south London today pleaded with others not to put themselves in danger.
Harrison Scott-Hood, 23, died on the tracks near Loughborough Junction station with Alberto Fresneda Carrasco, 19, and Jack Gilbert, 23. It is believed the three were struck by an out-of-service passenger train shortly after 1am on Monday. Mr Scott-Hood, known as Harry Hood, wrote graffiti under the tag name Lover and worked as a chef at Kricket restaurant in Brixton.
Today his heartbroken parents revealed their “beautiful” son, who attended private schools Portland Place and Hampstead Fine Arts College, had also been a talented poet and songwriter.
Speaking from their Muswell Hill home, Perry Hood and Susie Begg said they had not known their son was on the railway line that night.
Ms Begg, 64, said: “We knew Harry was painting. He paints, that’s his passion. He was beyond [talented]. He loved what he did, but he would never knowingly put himself in danger. That’s why we were so shocked. To anybody else, just don’t do it. Express your art the way you want to express it, but never put yourself in an unsafe position.” Chauffeur Mr Hood, 71, said: “When he left [on Sunday] I said to him, ‘happy painting’. As far as we were concerned he was going to places where it was legal. The only thing I think of why they might do it on those areas occasionally is that at [the legal walls] someone else will come along and paint over it.” Tributes have poured in from members of London’s graffiti community since the tragedy. A shrine has sprung up outside the station with flowers and spray-painted tributes.
Holding a framed picture of their son, his parents showed the Standard some of his art work, including intricate graphic designs and notebooks brimming with sketches and tags. Ms Begg, a former model who runs an art agency, added: “I never knew how well known he was. If you go on Instagram, it’s a real art community. Their work has gone worldwide. It’s been unbelievable.” The couple said they had met Mr Carrasco, who wrote under the name Trip, but did not know Mr Gilbert, whose tag was K-Bag. Mr Carrasco’s father, Carlos Fresneda, is the London correspondent for the Spanish daily El Mundo.
Today Mr Scott-Hood’s parents also demanded a public apology from former Transport for London board member Brian Cooke, who caused outrage after referring to the three young men as “common scum”.
Mr Hood said: “When I read that, I thought how can a person call our son and his two friends common scum, which they’re not. He’s not scum. None of them are scum. I would like a retraction from this man. He’s turned his Twitter page off — why say it in the first place?”