A statue of Shakespeare with a Hamlet-inspired twist has replaced one of the Walled Off Hotel collection’s most recognisable pieces, David engulfed in a cloud of tear gas. Whether David has been sold or taken away for restoration is unclear. The Shakespeare statue has reportedly stood in the WOH offices for some time. Pictures of Shakespeare were published on Facebook on March 25 by Walled Off Hotel visitor Jesse Zuefle.
Above, the Shakespeare statue, photos by Jesse Zuefle. Below, David in a cloud of teargas, photo by R.A.
In a brilliant performance, an unknown poet in the style of John Cooper Clarke recites a poem on the theme “Gentrification is coming because there is a Banksy in Margate now”, accompanied by a guy in a wig on a distorted guitar. Apparently, the clip was filmed during an open mic session at a pub in Margate. The clip can be seen at https://www.instagram.com/p/Cp5WlIWP4e6/
The artwork appeared on the side of a derelict farmhouse in the seaside town of Herne Bay, only 20 km from Margate, where he did Valentine’s Day mascara a month ago. The demolition of the house, including the mural, can be interpreted in many ways.
The Ukrainian Post Office issued a postage stamp on 20 February featuring a Banksy mural depicting a boy defeating Putin in judo to mark the first anniversary of Russia’s invasion. On 27 February, Banksy confirmed the postage stamp on his Instagram.
The Valentine’s Day mascara mural appeared in Margate, 100 km east of London, on Tuesday morning, 14 February. The Guardian reported on the dismantling of the artwork the same day:
“A Banksy artwork that was dismantled by a council in Kent “on the grounds of safety” just hours after its unveiling has had its chest freezer returned. The mural, titled Valentine’s Day Mascara, appeared to highlight the issue of domestic violence. It incorporated a freezer, a broken garden chair, a blue crate and an empty beer bottle, which were all removed from the site on Tuesday.”
Why a domestic violence motive on Valentine’s Day? It could have something to do with the big street art exhibition Beyond the Streets at the Saatchi Gallery in London, which opened on 17 February and featured more than 50 of Banksy’s colleagues, among them Shepard Fairey and 3D. As we all know, advertising tycoon Charles Saatchi is the founder and owner of Saatchi Gallery, and Banksy’s views on the advertising industry are well known through his artwork and writings. In 2013, writer Nigella Lawson broke up with Charles Saatchi amidst well-publicised accusations of domestic violence.
“I’ve made 50 of these screenprints with all proceeds going to our friends in Ukraine. Visit banksy.legacyofwarfoundation.com”
It’s a signed and hand-finished print in an edition of 50. The price is GBP 5,000 plus taxes; the market value is, of course, much higher.
One can sign up here to participate in the lottery: https://banksy.legacyofwarfoundation.com. All proceeds go to the Legacy of War Foundation, an ONG that helps Ukrainians with medical supplies and other humanitarian equipment.
“In Ukraine I saw a Legacy of War team sweep in and provide medical attention, heaters, fresh water and a friendly face to some very desperate people in a bombed out building. They also lent me one of their ambulances to work from, which turned out to be extremely useful when an angry babushka found me painting on her building and called the Police. I feel the least I should do is raise enough money to replace the number plates on the ambulance I hotted up..” — Banksy
Fashion retailer GUESS was forced to shut its Regent Street outlet on 18 November, a few hours after Banksy posted the following message on Instagram:“They’ve helped themselves to my artwork without asking, how can it be wrong for you to do the same to their clothes?”
In November 2022, Guess announced its collaboration with Brandalised, a company that specialises in licensing popular images to international retailers. This wretched use of Banksy’s art is possible thanks to an unfavourable ruling at the EUIPO (European Union Intellectual Property Office) in May 2021.
1) Firstly, we have the official exhibitions, which Team Banksy organises. Some of them are group shows, and some are exclusively Banksy. Banksy posted a list of his major exhibitions on his website in 2018:
2) Unauthorised exhibitions with authentic works are well-curated displays of special edition screen prints, canvases, and other unique materials, all with a Certificate of Authenticity issued by the Pest Control Office. The MOCO Museum in Amsterdam has an excellent, but unauthorised, permanent Banksy exhibition. Another one featuring authentic pieces is the touring exhibition Art of Banksy, last seen in Covent Garden, London. Former agent Steve Lazarides initially curated the Art of Banksy.
Two other touring exhibitions with authentic artwork are Banksy: The Art of Protest, which was previously titled “Genius or Vandal?” and Building Castles in the Sky. These exhibitions source their pieces from serious, long-term collectors. One can assume they are not very popular with the Banksy camp, but they are honest and well-executed exhibitions.
3) Then we have the fake exhibitions. There are several ongoing exhibitions around the world with 100% fake Banksy artwork, squeezing out the exhibits mentioned above. They have no insurance or cost of sourcing the art, as they only display fakes. Typically, these fake exhibits consist of bad reproductions of street art and shoddy copies of his most iconic canvases and screen prints. The organisers often promote the fake studio pieces as being authentic. To make it even more fake and confusing, one of these shady operators has copied the name of The Art of Banksy from the exhibit mentioned above.
The following photos are from the 100% fake but well-attended exhibit The Mystery of Banksy – A Genius Mind in Malmö, Sweden:
Photos from the 100% fake Banksy exhibition The Mystery of Banksy – A Genius Mind in Malmö, Sweden. Photos: R.A.
“Next week the four people charged with pulling down Colston’s statue in Bristol are going on trial. I’ve made some souvenir shirts to mark the occasion. Available today 11th December from various outlets in the city (all proceeds to the defendants so they can go for a pint). One per person, £25 each plus VAT. Details on the Ujima Radio breakfast show from 9am.”
Photograph: @banksy on Instagram
A few hours later, the first Colston tees started popping up on eBay at £ 1,250 apiece. At 4 PM, Banksy’s PR woman Jo Brooks communicated: “Banksy t-shirt drops in Bristol have now sold out.”
Banksy unofficial 