After a week of vandalism against his street artworks, Sydney artist Scott Marsh has said attempts to deface his murals are disappointing but simply part of the job.
The artist, known for his controversial murals dotted around the city's inner west, has suffered a week of backlash with various artworks covered by writing and "thrown buckets of paint".
Marsh said he was disappointed his artworks - which take days to create - were destroyed, but would "not take it personally".
"When you're working in a public space that's what tends to happen, especially when you're doing stuff that dances on that line of politically correct stuff or that could be deemed offensive by some people," Marsh said.
"If that was something that would make me super upset, I guess I should be looking for a new occupation."
On Monday night a 16-year-old boy was charged after allegedly damaging a mural on the wall of Bray Street in Erskineville, where Marsh's mural of the singer George Michael is located.
The teenager was the second person charged in relation to the St. George mural; on Monday police issued a 23-year-old man with a court attendance notice over a graffiti charge.
Painted nearly a year ago, the St. George mural was targeted after Marsh's mural depicting Tony Abbott and George Pell, titled The Happy Ending, was also vandalised last week.
Located on the side of the Botany View Hotel in Newtown, The Happy Ending featured Mr Abbott in a wedding dress and sash with the words "bride to be" next to a shirtless and muscular Cardinal Pell. Mr Abbott was depicted with one hand down Cardinal Pell's pants.
Having developed his skills following years doing graffiti in his youth, Marsh said he was used to some negative backlash and losing work "the next day".
While the threats he had received in response to The Happy Ending had "gone to a whole new level", the majority of people he had spoken to "thought it was funny and a good light-hearted joke".
Meanwhile, his artwork depicting George Michael had previously drawn positive compliments from visitors around the world.
Yet Marsh is mostly concerned for residents living near the defaced murals, particularly as some of the paintings are on the side of individual homes.
"I just feel super bad for the people that live in that community, and particularly the gay guys that live [in the area], because their homes are under attack," Marsh said.
"I know they are not feeling super safe in their own space, which is not cool at all."
Marsh views his "political murals" - which are funded out of his own pocket - as a form of social commentary intended to start conversation. It's a goal he thinks was certainly achieved by his most recent artworks.
"I don't want to come out with some opinion saying 'this is what we should do'. It's more creating something people can smile about, which also gets a reaction and gets people talking about the issue," Marsh said.
"None of it was motivated by religion."
Marsh was concerned that the attempts to deface his artworks amounted to censorship of his artwork.
"Everyone is always crying free speech unless it's about them," Marsh said.
"For sure it's censorship. I've heard people calling [The Happy Ending mural] pornography, but you see more pornographic images going past on the bus every day.
"Two caricatures, one with his hand down the other's pants is not pornography in my book."
Marsh plans to repaint "updated versions" of the artworks in the future, but is currently "laying low" following backlash and threats received in response to his most recent paintings.
