Brixton Riot '81

This visually-chaotic drawing is a dramatic account of the rioting in Brixton over the weekend of 11-13 April 1981. The artist Mike Hawthorne was in Brixton on the Saturday night and began work on a series of drawings as soon as he got home. Although completed in 1987, this drawing is based on his original 1981 sketches.

The Brixton Riot, also known as the Brixton Uprising, was one of 20th-century London's worst outbreaks of disorder. Provoked by an overbearing policing strategy, it marked a complete breakdown in the relationship between the police and the local community.

Hawthorne's drawing conveys the anger expressed by both sides. As the battle rages between police officers in uniform and residents, people can be seen throwing petrol bombs while shops are being looted. In the foreground there is a police van and officers attempting to arrest a rioter, while others are attacked with fists, feet and weapons.

A self-taught artist, Hawthorne has been drawing and painting since childhood. The first nine years of his life were spent in Nigeria and Sierra Leone. Since 1975 Hawthorne has worked in London, creating rock, reggae and jazz visuals and underground 'comix'.