About Banksy Biography –use (Streetart 1) for your MLA citation
Arguably the most controversial street artist in the world, Banksy has developed an entire art
subculture devoted to his works. Banksy’s art can impact any location at any given moment. His
identity remains unknown, even after over 20 years of being involved with the graffiti scene. He has
worked with many different types of street art media and street art types. His work not only includes
many powerful, often controversial images, but they may also be found throughout the Internet
as viral images.
Banksy began his graffiti art lifestyle by admiring the works of Blek Le Rat and often recycling his old
ideas. He has been very active in the graffiti scene since the early 1990s. Initially, he hung around
a graffiti crew in Bristol by the name of DryBreadZ crew or DBZ. Soon after, he began to partner
with Inkie, another notable graffiti street artist.
By the age of 18, Banksy began to develop stencils after nearly being caught vandalizing public
spaces by police. As his crew fled from the scene, Banksy was stuck hiding beneath a garbage truck.
It was at this time that Banksy saw stencil letters on the truck. Looking for a faster way to paint,
Banksy decided stenciling would be his new graffiti type.
The most common form of street art Banksy uses are stencils. These are often in the form of multilayered stencils and/or combined with other media sources, such as spray-paint. He also includes
anything found in the streets like street signs and other objects to convey his message by crafting
beautiful street art installations. His artwork is often satirical and combines dark humor with graffiti
and also spread messages across art, philosophy, and politics.
By the early 2000s, Banksy relocated to London, where he began to gain notoriety and even worked
on a series of international exhibits. Eventually, he decided to travel to Palestine and the West Bank,
where he stenciled nine images on the Bethlehem Wall. These images were an instant hit and virally
exploded in the Internet.
At this time, Banksy’s silkscreen prints and stencil paintings were racking up record-breaking sales in
storied art auctions such as Sotheby’s and Bonham’s of London. These successful sales officially
broke him into the commercial business. In 2010 Banksy became a successful author and filmmaker
for the film “Exit Through the Gift Shop.”
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.”
The media and his supporters have always questioned Banksy’s identity due to a variety of identity
claims. Most recently, many popular theories, including an entire newspaper publication, pointed his
identity at being a Bristol native by the name of Robin Gunninham. If this is theory holds true, it will
allow even greater insight into the artistic world Banksy inhibits. What is even more interesting is that
he has managed to completely conceal his identity from his family. To this date, no Banksy identity
claim has ever been definitive.
Banksy’s art has been seen across the world. His travels have included Australia, England, the
United States, Israel, Jamaica, and even Canada. Most recently, he spent an entire month
glamorizing New York City with his street art, which grabbed the attention of thousands every day.
Banksy Painting Becomes Nightmare for British Homeowner by Sid Lipsey
https://www.yahoo.com/makers/banksy-painting-becomes-nightmare-for-british-113439226805.html
Gaza Strip History
http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/20436092
Banksy Goes Undercover In Gaza To Support Struggling Palestinians by Priscilla Frank
The anonymous street artist Banksy released a series of new works Wednesday in Gaza, all commenting on the dire situation of the 1.8
million Palestinian residents confined to the area.
One of the works is a short documentary posturing as an advertisement for the region, sarcastically framing the desolate territory as the
next hot tourist destination. The doc, allegedly shot by Banksy himself, begins with the artist traveling through a "network of illegal
tunnels" to enter Gaza, where he proceeds to create stencil artworks among the ruins and rubble that mark the locale. "Make this the year
YOU discover a new destination," the film flashes, interspersed with images making the brutal reality of life in the Gaza strip painfully
clear.
"Gaza is often described as ‘the world’s largest open air prison’ because no-one is allowed to enter or leave," Banksy's website explains.
"But that seems a bit unfair to prisons -- they don’t have their electricity and drinking water cut off randomly almost every day."
Along with the short film, Banksy scattered a variety of artworks around the region, one which reads in red ink, "If we wash our hands
of the conflict between the powerful and the powerless we side with the powerful -- we don't remain neutral."
Other images depict children swinging from an Israeli surveillance tower, and an image of the Greek mythical figure Niobe -- the Queen
of Thebes whose 14 children were murdered in a jealous rage. A third image depicts a kitten playing with scrap metal like a toy.
"The cat tells the whole world that she is missing joy in her life," a Palestinian man explains in Banksy's documentary. "The cat found
something to play with. What about our children? What about our children?"
Banksy supplied a second explanation on his website. "A local man came up and said ‘Please -- what does this mean?' I explained I
wanted to highlight the destruction in Gaza by posting photos on my website -- but on the internet people only look at pictures of
kittens."
Banksy has been vocal for years about his support for the Palestinian cause. In 2005, he created artwork on the Israeli West Bank barrier,
explaining the sentiment to The Independent. "The segregation wall is a disgrace. On the Israeli side it's all manicured lawns and SUVs,
on the other side it's just dust and men looking for work. 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. And I like to think I can help with that bit."
See Banksy's new Gaza pieces below and let us know your thoughts in the comments.
Banksy Painting Becomes Nightmare
for British Homeowner
Sid LipseyMarch 12, 2015
(Photo: Getty Images)
Having a graffiti artist paint a worthless picture on the side of your house? That’s a
problem. Having an internationally recognized graffiti artist paint a picture worth
millions on the side of your house? Turns out, that can be an even bigger
problem.
A homeowner in the English town of Cheltenham says his life has been a
nightmare ever since the world-famous street artist Banksypainted a mural on the
wall of his home.
In a brand new interview, the homeowner, David Possee, says he’s been in a
constant battle with local officials over the mural, titled “Spy Booth.”
"At the end of the day I don’t think I’ve done anything wrong," Possee tells local
radio station Swindon 105.5. "I’ve bought a house in Cheltenham and one day that
(the mural) rocks up and I’m the bad guy."
(Photo: Getty Images)
Possee says the trouble started immediately after he returned from a vacation last
April to find his home, which he rents out, was now the home of Banksy’s latest
work of street art. “Spy Booth” depicts three trenchcoat-wearing spies listening in
on the phone booth that’s in front of the mural.
"It was quite nice," Possee says. "I liked it."
Possee sought help from local officials on how best to protect the priceless mural
from the elements and vandals. Unfortunately, it was then he found out the house
was on a government landmark registry. And that, Possee says, is when the
horrors of bureaucracy took hold.
“They didn’t come up with any sort of ideas,” Possee says of local officials, who
shot down his suggestion to cover the mural with Perspex because it was against
rules covering listed buildings.
"They just said, ‘You can’t put that on there’, and I was threatened with a fine,"
Possee says. "They offered no alternative.”
Making matters worse, the wall on which the mural appears was already in bad
shape, and scheduled for repair before Banksy had his way with it. Possee says
when began repairs on the now-priceless wall, things got even crazier.
(Photo: Getty Images)