The Jeffrey Epstein scandal has been in the news for a couple of weeks now, as the convicted paedophile faces charges of sex-trafficking underage girls.

Roman Polanski also has a notoriously ugly history when it comes to young girls and sexual assault.

It’s the common ground that these men share that earned them a starring role in street artist Sabo’s latest vandalism-in-the-service-of-social-commentary.

Here’s The Los Angeles Times:

Los Angeles street artist Sabo has done it again, making over a billboard for Quentin Tarantino’s “Once Upon a Time … in Hollywood” as yet another critique of rampant sex abuse in Hollywood and beyond.

In one instance, the political guerrilla artist superimposed the faces of wealthy tycoon Jeffrey Epstein and fugitive filmmaker Roman Polanski on a billboard featuring the film’s stars, Leonardo DiCaprio and Brad Pitt.

Sabo retitled his faux flick starring the disgraced Epstein and Polanski “Once Upon a Time in … Pedowood” — a not-so-subtle dig at the men’s histories with underage girls.

Here’s Sabo with his motivation for the billboard, which was taken down shortly after he altered it on Friday.

“Basically, I just wanted to bring that time together with today,” Sabo, 52, told the Los Angeles Times on Friday, speaking about the Polanski-Epstein billboard. “I put two people who are fairly well-known and wanted them to share the billboard — one from the past, one from the present — and I wanted to highlight how [child sex abuse] is such a problem in Hollywood, particularly with the child casting couch.”

Unsavoury Agents also has an Instagram account:

The artist, who modified the billboard with the help of drones and two assistants late Thursday night and early Friday morning, said he has not yet seen Tarantino’s film Once Upon A Time In Hollywood, but plans to this weekend.

It should also be noted that the movie, set in Manson-era Hollywood, touches on the murder of Polanski’s pregnant wife, actress Sharon Tate (played by Margot Robbie). Tate is a supporting character pivotal to the movie and Polanski (portrayed by Rafal Zawierucha) is shown courting her.

“Movies should be entertaining,” Sabo added. “I would hate to think of Tarantino as a political director, rather than one who tells stories. And as soon as they start shoving their politics down my throat, I’m not interested. That’s for me to do as a political guerrilla artist. He should write a story that’s entertaining [and] leave the political horror to me.”

Not the most subtle art intervention, but I guess it got the job done.

[source:losangelestimes]