Artist of the day: Artist of the Day, December 20, 2021: Banksy, a British graffiti master, painter, activist, filmmaker and all-purpose provocateur (#1448)

Monday, December 20, 2021

Artist of the Day, December 20, 2021: Banksy, a British graffiti master, painter, activist, filmmaker and all-purpose provocateur (#1448)

Banksy (1974) is a British graffiti master, painter, activist, filmmaker and all-purpose provocateur

Banksy is the pseudonym of a "guerrilla" street artist known for his controversial, and often politically themed, stenciled pieces.

When Time magazine selected the British artist Banksy for its list of the world’s 100 most influential people in 2010, he found himself in the company of Barack Obama, Steve Jobs and Lady Gaga. He supplied a picture of himself with a paper bag (recyclable, naturally) over his head. Most of his fans don’t really want to know who he is. But they do want to follow his upward trajectory from the outlaw spraying—or, as the argot has it, “bombing”—walls in Bristol, England, during the 1990s to the artist whose work commands hundreds of thousands of dollars in the auction houses of Britain and America. Today, he has bombed cities from Vienna to San Francisco, Barcelona to Paris and Detroit. And he has moved from graffiti on gritty urban walls to paint on canvas, conceptual sculpture.

Very little is known about Banksy himself, as he refuses to be interviewed and keeps his identity carefully maintained. A world-renowned mystery man, Banksy has risen through the ranks to become one of the world's greatest street artists partly by creating an urgency to understand his character. Street art fanatics are consistently satisfied with every piece of art he delivers, though he often leaves them wanting more. This tactic carries one's curiosity to explore a completely new perspective or idea, leaving his artistic creations to inspire beginning and advanced artists. This inspiration is also known as the “Banksy Effect.”

In 2005 Banksy painted a wall on the Palestinian side of the West Bank; on the viewer’s side, children play on a forlorn patch of earth, while through an apparent hole in the wall there is a scene of a perfect tropical beach. Banksy described himself as a “quality vandal,” challenging the authority of political and art institutions on both the right and the left.

Banksy’s books—which include Banging Your Head Against a Brick Wall (2001), Existentialism (2002), and Wall and Piece (2005)—document his projects; iconic examples of his work, including a life-size image of two policemen kissing, were featured in the bleak futuristic film Children of Men (2006). Banksy directed the 2010 film Exit Through the Gift Shop, a documentary – which was nominated for an Academy Award – that ostensibly profiled the lives and work of the world’s most talented graffiti artists. Critics were divided on the film, though, as some chose to accept it at face value while others saw it as a satire, with documentary subject and filmmaker-turned-street artist Thierry Guetta serving as a commentator on the commercialization of art.

In September 2015 Banksy debuted Dismaland Bemusement Park, his most-elaborate project to date, in Weston-super-Mare, England. An immersive and fully functional amusement park that featured political commentary on the distribution of wealth, sexism, and the UK government.The temporary amusement park and conceptual art show, which included work from other artists, was described by Banksy as “a family attraction that acknowledges inequality and impending catastrophe.”

Banksy’s art has been seen across the world. His travels have included Australia, England, the United States, Israel, Jamaica, and even Canada.

© 2021. All content on this blog is protected by international copyright laws All images are copyrighted © by Banksy. Apart from fair dealing for the purpose of private study, research, criticism or review as permitted under the Copyright Act, the use of any image from this site is prohibited unless prior written permission is obtained. All images used for illustrative purposes only