some sort of Banksy retrospective
The artwork appeared on the side of a derelict farmhouse in the seaside town 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.
Photos: @banksy, and @banksygrossdomesticproduct
Photos: @banksy
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 Saatchi Gallery in London, which opened on 17 February with more than 50 of Banksy’s street art colleagues participating, 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-publicized accusations of domestic violence.
After a 15-month recess, Banksy is finally back to work with some high-class art in the area around Kyiv, Ukraine.
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“We can confirm that the artwork at the end of The Outlaws was an original Banksy, and that Christopher Walken painted over that artwork during the filming of this scene, ultimately destroying it,” a spokesperson for the BBC said. The show is written and directed by Bristolian comedian Stephen Merchant and is filmed in Bristol.
From BBC’s website:
“The Outlaws, written and directed by Stephen Merchant, stars Hollywood veteran Walken as one of a group of minor criminals refurbishing a building for their community service. The last episode sees his character uncover the Banksy rat and two spray cans behind some wooden boards, and ask his supervisor if he should paint over it. The probation officer is looking the other way so doesn’t realise it’s a Banksy and tells him all graffiti must be painted over, which he does.” https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-59236187
After a five-month recess, Banksy is back at it with ten brilliant pieces in Great Yarmouth and Lowestoft, two adjacent towns on the eastern coast not far from Norwich. The pieces went up around 6 August but were confirmed a week later, on 13 August.
Photos: http://www.banksy.co.uk
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The piece depicts Oscar Wilde escaping the Reading GAOL prison with his typewriter knot to the bedsheets. Oscar Wilde had been incarcerated in Reading GAOL prison after being convicted of gross indecency in 1895. Wilde was sentenced to two years of forced labour.
The piece has not yet been confirmed by Banksy’s usual channels, but it seems to be an authentic one. Maybe Banksy’s next big project is a book?
There had been some buzz before the piece appeared on the Banksy website http://www.banksy.co.uk on 10 December around 17h. A few hours later, it was published on the official Instagram account @banksy.
Photographs: http://www.banksy.co.uk
The Guardian commented the artwork a few hours later:
The owners of a house in Bristol have apparently pulled out of the sale of the property after a Banksy piece appeared on the wall. On Thursday, the anonymous street artist confirmed he was behind the artwork showing an older woman sneezing out her false teeth, which has appeared on a semi-detached house in steep Vale Street, Totterdown. The stencil mural, Aachoo!!”, had been covered up before its unveiling on Thursday morning. It shows a woman in a headscarf holding a handkerchief but dropping her walking stick and handbag as she loses her dentures while sneezing.
Vale Street is England’s steepest residential street – its 22-degree slope used during annual Easter Sunday egg-rolling competitions. ITV News West Country spoke to the owners of the house, which had a sold sign up outside, and were told they have pulled out of the sale. They were due to exchange contracts next week but the artwork could see the value of their house rocket.
Nicholas Makin, whose mother Aileen owns the property, said people had been climbing over the house to get a better look at the new piece. He told ITV News West Country that his mother was distressed by the attention and they will take time to consider what to do next.
Fred Loosmore, 28, a furniture maker who until recently rented a room in the house, told the PA Media news agency he had put a clear covering over it for protection. “We wanted to come up because people will deface it, and luckily we’ve got a workshop and a massive piece of acrylic we’ve got left over,” he said.
“When we lived here so many people would come, especially on bikes and stuff because they were trying to do the challenge up the hills. It’s a great spot. The artwork is so nice. It’s so relevant, isn’t it?”
From the Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2020/dec/10/bansky-confirms-he-created-aachoo-artwork-in-bristol
The piece first appeared on social media on 14 October. After a few days of speculations about whether it was done by a local street artist, Banksy confirmed the piece as his on Saturday morning.
The work depicts a girl hula-hooping with a tyre. The tyre once seemed part of the slaughtered bike lock chained at the lamppost beside her.
As always, there are many interpretations to be made. One goes like this: Even if you suffer from the economy and the pandemic, you can find happiness in the little things. Find new uses for obsolete materialism. A simple but powerful advice from stoicism?
According to local residents of Lenton talking to The Guardian, the bike appeared at the scene at the same time as the artwork:
“Surinder Kaur, 42, who runs the beauty salon next to the mural, said the bike had appeared at the same time as the mural. She said within hours the council had rushed to protect the piece by placing clear plastic sheeting over it. Vandals have spray-painted over the plastic two or three times already. Everyone is very excited and many, many people are coming to see the picture,” Kaur said. “Everyone was confused about whether it was real or not real but it’s an amazing picture, it’s amazing art.”
Excerpt from : https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2020/oct/17/banksy-confirms-hula-hoop-girl-mural-in-nottingham-is-his
Photographs: Banksy’s Instagram
The video of the hit was posted on Banksy’s Instagram on 14 July with the title “London Underground – undergoes deep clean”. It depicts Banksy entering an underground train carriage while dressed as a cleanup crew member. Banksy paints a rat sneezing while the other rats struggle to get their masks on. At the end of the clip, we see the words “I get lockdown, but I get up again” sprayed on the carriage doors, referring to Chumbawamba’s hit Tubthumping from 1997.
“Transport for London confirmed on Tuesday evening that the work was removed “some days ago” due to strict anti-graffiti policy, but that it would welcome Banksy to recreate his message “in a suitable location”.
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Banksy went back to his origins in Barton Hill for Valentine’s Day. And the girl with the red balloon is also back, but this time with a slingshot in her hand.
A few days later, Banksy published the sketches:
In his own words:
“I’m kind of glad the piece in Barton Hill got vandalised. The initial sketch was a lot better..”
Banksy unofficial 