On Tuesday, September 10, a court in Baku sentenced 38-year-old street artist Théo Clerc to three years in prison for graffiti he painted on March 30 in the Azerbaijani capital’s metro. Two other street artists who accompanied him, a New Zealander and an Australian, were given simple fines for the same acts. “There is no difference between the three cases, apart from nationality”stresses his Azerbaijani lawyer Elchin Sadigov.
The three men have each paid the €3,500 fine covering the cost of removing their graffiti. Only the Frenchman was immediately jailed for three months, while his two associates were banned from leaving Azerbaijani territory pending trial. “The article of the Criminal Code under which Mr. Clerc was convicted does not provide for a prison sentence. The verdict is simply illegal.”indicates to World a source close to the case.
The three artists, a group of old friends, arrived in Azerbaijan on March 25 as part of an international tour, a common practice in the world of urban art. Each of them created a graffiti on three different trains. These works, including The world I was able to see the photographs, they consist of stylized letters and have no political character. “My clients were arrested on 31 March by police at Baku airport as they were preparing to leave the country. They were slapped during the initial interrogation, but were not subjected to any further violence afterwards.says Sadigov, one of the few Azerbaijani lawyers who defends people prosecuted for political reasons.
Notice from the Quai d’Orsay
Théo Clerc, a film and fashion designer who is also a household name on the Parisian street art scene, was only able to receive a visit from the French consul on May 29, after two months of detention. “It happened right after I visited my brother in the prison visiting room.” says Charlie Clerc, 39, computer graphics designer in Essonne“During my first visit, Théo suffered from tics; he was very nervous, had memory lapses, and was unrecognizable.”Charlie Clerc recalls. His brother made requests of him. “strange” by phone like that of “painting an Azerbaijani flag next to the Eiffel Tower”. Then, during the next call, Théo Clerc said to his brother: “Don’t do what I said last week.”
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