How do we define Banksy? There are plenty of options: street artist, oil painter, sculptor, conceptual artist, organiser of art shows, prankster, writer, or filmmaker. One could say that the various forms and shapes in which Banksy appears create an immense narrative, like no other living artist. Perhaps the beauty of it all rests in the whole picture: Banksy as a piece of conceptual art in itself, where carefully elaborated storytelling mixed with misdirection keeps it all together.
Maybe the shredding of a Girl With Balloon canvas at Sotheby’s in 2018 resumes Banksy’s scope:He took a motif from his street art and painted it on a canvas, then transformed the canvas via performance art—the shredding—into a piece of conceptual art with an acid statement directed at the art establishment, and finally, the shredded canvas in its frame became an art installation and was renamed ‘Love is in the Bin’.
It’s all about the narrative
Banksy is a political artist, or maybe it’s better to say a philosophical artist. There is always a message and a certain attitude in his motives – you don’t buy his studio art to decorate your house; buying a Banksy comes with a philosophical statement. You buy into a part of an enormous narrative which is created by many statements in many different genres – street art, oil paintings, pranks, films, and of course his big exhibitions, which in themselves are maybe his strongest artistic expressions.
Other key elements of the storytelling are the artistic and political risk-taking. In a world where artists tend to play it safe and stick to a proven concept, Banksy’s risk-taking is unprecedented. Not only has he constantly been challenging the art world, but he has also taken sides in a number of controversial political issues. Also in his art, he is exploring new territories and always surprising his public. Banksy’s catalogue is amazingly diversified in terms of genres, material, techniques, and themes. One has to think of Picasso or Dali to find such a rich and varied production, which is quite unusual in today’s art landscape of ‘one-trick ponies’.
Some thoughts on Banksy’s anonymity
In the early days, there was a real need to keep the identity secret to avoid police persecution and legal consequences. But not any longer; any city with cultural ambitions would have rolled out the red carpet for Banksy, and the local police would have escorted him to paint on any public wall in the city. So, why stay anonymous if it’s no longer required for legal reasons?
Other street art stars, for example, Shepard Fairey, started out like Banksy in the 90s, doing illegal street art, but after some encounters with the law, Shepard and other of his peers have operated in the booming legal street art market, doing commissions from city halls and property owners who want a subversive touch on their buildings. Banksy could perfectly make the same journey from illegal to legal street work. But of course, that’s not how it works; Banksy will continue doing illegal street art, where illegality is a key element of the artistic expression. In other words, to continue with his most defining artistic expression (illegal and unsolicited street art), he needs to be anonymous; if he weren’t, the expression’s illegal aspect would fall flat.
Some old philosopher said, “Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence.” It’s improbable that anyone will uncover an exceptional piece of evidence in the “Who is Banksy?” puzzle. In such a scenario, who could provide confirmation? How would we know that it’s not just another piece of misdirection? After all, do we really want to know?
Banksy unofficial 