Once again the news is About Banksy and his Graffiti Art.
British graffiti artist Banksy did it again: under the cover of the night he managed to leave one of his works, believed to be the biggest one so far, on the wall of the Post Office in central London, right under the watchful eye of the camera.
To do this he had to erect (behind the security fence) three story scaffolding, use it to paint a huge sign and the figures of a boy on a ladder, a security guard and a dog watching him, then leave, without being noticed and stopped. The scaffolding were removed later, and again without being detected by the camera. Banksy’s message is tale telling: Big Brother, we know we are being watched and we know how to work around it.
I have to admit, I am warming up to his methods and his art. He is different, he is driven, he is unique. He is also a criminal, he is breaking the law. Do I really like him, or I fell under the influence of the media? How do you interpret and accept this somewhat a phenomenon, without feeling divided? Is there a middle of the road solution? Or, if compromise found, the whole concept will lose the appeal it delivers?
Here is my two cents on it:
I wonder if he could create his art with a kind of paint, that could be easily washed away? This way an unhappy owner gets rid of the graffiti with a minimum of a hustle: spraying a good deal of water on the graffiti will clean the wall and the memory of an unpleasant surprise at the same time.
Or, if the owner wants to profit from the graffiti, as happening more and more often with Banksy’s creations, the owner may spray a protective layer of whatever is used for it and go into a business of marketing and selling the painting on the eBay. Any profit realised will make happy at least 2 people: the seller and the buyer. The city would have to live fine-less or devise a new way to use a citation.
Would I want to have graffiti, painted by Banksy, on my property? Let’s see.
If I wake up finding it on the wall of my house, I’d have to pay a substantial fine within 30 days, or remove the graffiti. If I leave it there, my fine will grow, my home will attract attention of the media, the neighbours will call me names, I’ll have to come up with the reasons why I do what I do, I’ll be misquoted on several occasions…
All in all, at this point my liking the painting won’t be an issue. I’ll have to come up with a solution to remove it.
Then again, I could sell the piece of the wall with the painting on it as soon, as possible, since the price and the hustle seems to worth it.
Or, should I keep it hidden somewhere for a while? For that I would have to carefully remove the painting from the wall… No! I’d have to remove a piece of the wall, replace it with a new wall, paint. There.
Now, I am not knowledgeable enough to know how and where (providing I rent or have a space) to keep it, control the temperature, the light, the humidity, to do whatever you do with the painting to preserve it for a number of years. Isn’t it what you do with piece of art, when you hold it for the posterity or the near future?
Now, imagine, three years later I visit my piece of art, stored in some place, and find it all dried up, colors faded, stucco cracked, half of it in dust on the floor. No painting, no investment, money spent on the upkeep of this treasure is lost. Oh, no, the insurance! Do I have it?
And then, to add to an insult, I find out it was not even painted by Banksy. It was a copycat. But Banksy kept quiet, because he liked the message, the attention and the plight of the homeowner. What a bad dream! But I had fun writing it!
Now, seriously, how can someone, breaking the law become so popular, develop a following, command an outrageous price for the graffiti he leaves on the walls for free, and manage to stay invisible and untouchable to do it all by himself or with a very devoted team?.
He does all this to deliver his message: he is against the government? rules? laws? What is his solution? What should we, as a society, do?
Banksy is definitely a very talented and driven individual, but do we want every wall in town to feature a graffiti display, even if it’s popular among some individuals?
Maybe, Banksy should became a leader, organize a movement. He already proved his disdain for money by inventing a way to make it, give it away and not stopping the action by allowing himself being bought. He could start and keep disciplined an army of young people, teach them planning, delivering, following the agenda, hopefully, with a good cause, and other thing which the society could accept, embrace and agree with…And then…
Yahh, what a Utopian country I’ve described!!!
Anyone! Care to comment? On me or on Banksy.
See the picture and read the article with the comments at Daily Mail.
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