Will the Real Banksy Please Stand Up!?

Have you heard about this guy on the news? I have been obsessed with him for quite some time. The entire country is watching a movie unfold. No idea what I am talking about? Here is the deal…

There is a street artist named Banksy. He is originally from London and is currently residing somewhere in New York. Nobody but maybe a very, very select few know who the genius is behind the art. He started somewhere near the age of 16 dabbling in street art. It is believed  his name is Robin Gunningham (or Banx) and was born in Bristol, England in 1973.

Not only is he a street artist but he is a painter, activist, filmmaker, and was named one of the most influential people in 2010. I have a short list of people I would like to meet in my lifetime and he is one of the top 5.  I am, in no other words, enamored by him. Why? Here are a few incredible events that Banksy has pulled off to date:

All of them are more remarkable than the next:

In 2005, Banksy dressed as a British pensioner and entered four of New York’s most  prominent museums: The Brooklyn Museum, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Museum of Modern Art and The  Museum of National History. He attached his own works complete with authoritative name plaque and explanation. He said “This historic occasion has less to do with finally being embraced by the fine art establishment and is more about the judicious use of a fake beard and some high strength glue.” He added “They’re good enough to be in there, so I don’t know why I should wait.”

Banksy placed his Discount Soup Can at MoMA — a play on Andy Warhol’s famous Campbell’s soup series.

The walls of the Met were graced by his painting, You Have Beautiful Eyes, a portrait of a woman sporting a gas mask. The first picture shows him (or so we think it’s him) hanging it up. Banksy sent in the photo to the museum.

Banksy placed this work, Soldier with Spraycan, in the Brooklyn Museum. This painting depicted a colonial officer in front of anti-war graffiti holding a spray can.

 

 

Finally, his last installment was at the Natural Museum of History. Withus Oragainstus, a taxidermy beetle sporting missiles and a satellite dish for appendages. “It was just an outsider’s view of the modern American bug, bristling with listening devices and military hardware,” Banksy said. The title is a pun on Bush’s 2001 message to coalition partners.

 

The most incredible part of this whole story is that although the Met and the MoMa tore the paintings down, The Natural Museum of History and The Brooklyn Museum kept them up!

 

In August 2006, Paris Hilton was ready to release her new debut album “Paris.” Banksy and DJ Dangermouse (Gnarls Barkley) snagged a copy of her CD, scanned the packaging and ‘re-mixed’ it. They added a new mix CD in the real CD’s place, sealed 500 copies and distributed them to about 48 different record stores throughout London.

Original:

 

The altered editions featured cover sleeves with the heiress appearing either topless or with the head of one of her pet dogs as well as songs remixed by Danger Mouse with titles like “Why Am I Famous?,” “What Am I For?,” and “What Have I Done?”

What you get on the CD is a 45 minute mix of the dumbest Paris Hilton quotes you can find, over the same beat.  At first, it might sound boring and repetitive, but then again…so does Paris’s real album.

And that’s the point Dangermouse is making.

This is the video (you have to watch it, it is insane! it is only 3 min) of exactly HOW they did it!!!

My favorite part of the story ,though, is that for all the CD’s that were mistakenly bought, none were returned and no complaints filed. Amazing!

 

In July of 2008, a mysterious painting showed up in the west bank on the Palestinian side of the wall. Banksy appeared to be on vacation in Israel. With all of the violence going on at that time, he decided to risk his life and make some striking and meaningful art. Below is one of a dove with a flack-jacket on. A snipers laser is zeroing in the symbol of peace. This is on the side of a building facing the Israeli side.

This painting is also on the Palestinian side of the wall on the Gaza Strip. It is a painting of a hole in the wall letting Palestinians see what paradise awaits them on the other side. This is a farce. The children painted below are waiting for the hole to open wider so they can play on the beach. Incredible irony from Banksy.

Here is another beauty by Banksy on the Palestinian side of the wall. It implies that ‘just outside the window’ is a beautiful landscape. Another farce. A spokesperson for Banksy admits that the artist was threatened by Palestinian authority for vandalism of Palestinian property, which was ironic since the Israelis built these walls to separate themselves from them. Irony at its best!

 

Banksy said, after the gaza strip artwork was completed ” The segregation wall is a disgrace…The possibility I find exciting is you could turn the world’s most invasive and degrading structure into the world’s longest gallery of free speech and bad art. Besides I love Palestine – all the giant walls, the dirt, and the falafel stalls remind you of Glastonbury.”

Fast Forward to this October – Banksy announced a month-long “residency” in New York. What does this mean? As the artworks have been revealed on the streets of New York, we are starting to get an idea.

I will only highlight two. Banksy outfitted a slaughterhouse truck with dozens of screaming animals for his insane mobile installation of “Sirens of the Lambs.”

 

Here is the 1 min video, pretty hysterical… The truck has been touring New York City as part of Banksy’s October street art show “Better Out than In.”

“Better Out Than In” is a month-long art show in the streets of New York City. Banksy kicked off the project on Oct 2nd with “The Streets in Play,”

a painting of two boys reaching into a “Graffiti is a Crime” street sign located in Chinatown. The piece, before it was taken down, was accompanied by a phone number that viewers can call to receive a museum-like audio tour of Banksy’s exhibits. To hear the amusing audio guide for the first piece, dial 1-800-656-4271 and enter #1 when prompted, or visit Banksy’s site.

Here are a few more from the NY street show (def going on his website for the audio guide, it is quite spectacular!)

 

The last, most remarkable, can’t believe he did this, prank Banksy pulled was 5 days ago. Banksy set up an elderly man outside of Central Park  to sell his spray-painted canvases for a  price of $60 each.

 

If you are a fan of Banksy, you would know his artwork sells for over six figures!!! The elderly man sat for over 6 hours at the park and sold a total of 8 paintings for $420! The first 2 were sold to a woman who negotiated them for a 50% discount 4 hours after he opened.

YOU MUST WATCH THIS VIDEO!!!

What I would have given to have been there?!

You can follow Banksy on Instagram (BANKSYART) or his website. In 2010, he did a documentary called “Exit Through The Gift Shop.” Phenomenal, don’t miss it!!! Because Banksy never shows his face, he asked for permission to wear a disguise to the 2011 Academy Awards ceremony when his documentary film  was nominated. The academy said no, so he didn’t attend (as far as we know). He did not win the Oscar.

Have you been following him? A little obsessed? Genius or madman? Genius if I do say so myself! Wonder what he will do next?? I only hope I meet him before I D.I.E…guess we can all just hope…