A statue will be erected in the location of the photo to honour the “four lads in jeans” who gained internet popularity when their image became a meme.
On a night out in 2019, Jamie Philips, Connor Humpage, Kevin Rooney, and Alex Lacey innocently posed for a group photo.
The pals’ photo, which showed them standing side by side in tight denim pants, went viral and received criticism for being “stereotypically British.”
A statue depicting the four men has allegedly been sculpted by an artist and will be erected in Birmingham near the site where the meme first surfaced.
On Saturday, August 27, it will be displayed outside All Bar One, according to the artist, also known as Tat Vision.
The sculptor said that it was constructed from tight-fitting women mannequins, papier-mâché, and PVA adhesive, then painted bronze.
The artist wrote: “Come down and see my four lads in jeans bronze statue [on] Saturday outside All Bar One Grand Central” while posting a photo of his ongoing work on Instagram.
A memorial to these guys that was motivated by the ancient Greek monuments
These four men are prepared for an adventure similar to the opening scene of Homer’s Odyssey.
The Birmingham Weekender, which includes over 100 free events to enjoy at the Bullring and Grand Central, the concourse of New Street Station, the Birmingham Markets, and 1000 Trades Square, includes his art installation.
The “lads in jeans” collective now has a verified Instagram account with over 25,000 followers where they repost memes made by internet users.
Since becoming Internet memes, they have interacted with celebrities, appearing in images next to Martyn Ford, a bodybuilder, and Chris Kamara, a football hero. They have also been interviewed by BBC Radio 1 and Good Morning Britain.
The gang, from Coventry and Birmingham, informed hosts Piers Morgan and Susanna Reid that they had suffered a deluge of online hate as a result of the numerous memes that had been circulated.
My work number was made public, so I started receiving a tonne of prank calls, Alex Lacey revealed.
“That had a big impact on me.” To be quite honest, it did have a significant impact on my emotional condition since you should keep personal and professional matters apart.
I had to leave social media, he said, since they started writing troll remarks on my mother’s comments as well. It wasn’t pleasant.
They also admitted to The Tab that their portrayal caused some people to associate their “look” with images of “lads” who hold “bigoted” opinions.
One such instance was a picture with the “statement” “It’s sorry what happened to that black geezer in America but all this rioting and looting is just not on friend,” in reference to George Floyd’s passing.
One Twitter user commented on the sneak preview of the bronze-painted monuments that will be shown tomorrow, saying: “Perfect portrayal of these Brum icons thus far.”
I truly can’t wait to see the heads, another person said, if the bodies are anything like this.