MEMORIALS TO THE FALLEN OF COVID

IF YOU WALK ALONG LONDON’S SOUTH BANK, you will see a wall of hearts. Hand painted, the hearts are uneven in shape and size, unsteady as a child’s handwriting that wobbles precariously into legibility. Some are emblazoned with the text “save our NHS”, while others bear the name of the dead rendered anonymously as “Mum” or “Nanny”.

All are red, the colour of blood, and, latterly, anger. This is the National Covid Memorial Wall, created by the people, for the people.

But do not be fooled into thinking that the pandemic grief has, in any way, been democratized, one heart at a time. Rather, the Memorial Wall represents an act of quasi-guerrilla commemoration, a makeshift shrine