Where do you expect to see graffiti? Probably not in a museum. Bristol city museum, in the south west of
England, was the type of place you go to see classical statues and stuffed dinosaur bones until the arrival of the ‘Banksy versus the Bristol Museum’ exhibition in the summer of 2009. The exhibition showed more than 100 works by Banksy, the world’s most famous graffiti artist!
Banksy is a man of mystery. He hardly ever gives interviews and likes to be anonymous. Nobody knows much about his life or his background but many people believe that his real name is Robin
Gunningham, Robert Banks or Robin Banks and that he was born in 1973 near Bristol.
Banksy’s controversial ‘street art’ includes spray paintings on live sheep and cows and graffiti on the huge wall erected to divide Israel and Palestine. Brad Pitt recently spent over 2 million dollars on a Banksy original. Banksy designed an album cover for the Brit pop group Blur in 2003 but he has refused at least four requests to do adverts for Nike.
Bristol isn’t the only place in Britain to welcome graffiti. The DPM Park in Dundee, Scotland has the longest legal graffiti wall (over 100m) in the UK. Anyone can paint on the council owned wall any time they like. Mike Crilley, the graffiti wall project organiser, promotes the positive side of graffiti and runs classes for local children.
So has graffiti gone mainstream? Not exactly. It’s illegal to paint on somebody else's property so make sure you find a legal graffiti wall like the one in Dundee if you want to have a go!
Exercise 1. Choose the best answer to complete the sentences about the text above.
1.
Banksy is a mysterious character because...
A – He exhibited more than 100 works in Bristol Museum
B - He doesn’t reveal much about his character
C – people know very little about him
2. He sometimes uses unusual objects to paint on like…
A – book covers
B – famous squares
C – animals’ fur
3. Not long ago a(n) …… purchased a piece of Banksy’s art.
A – advertiser
B – actor

C – sportsman
4. Surprisingly, he isn’t interested in being famous by…..
A – appearing in interviews
B – appearing on TV
C – appearing in ads
5. Nowadays this branch of art is supported by British people by….
A – opening legal, new places (or walls) to artists
B – teaching graffiti in each school
C – Mike Crilley, the project organizer
6. Graffiti is still popular but be careful with laws about….
A – how to use sprays
B – public areas and buildings
C – damaging somebody’s possession with it
Exercise 2. Find words in the text that are the closest in meaning to the following definitions.
1.
somebody who wants to hide his name and personality
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2. to put something up, to build or construct
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3. an expectation or demand
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4. when two or more opposing ideas create an illogical situation
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5. the front page or side of an object to put a name or a title on
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6. to support, put a case forward
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7. to follow the most up to date, or a fashionable idea
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8. somebody’s own possession/holding

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Exercise 3. What do you personally think about graffiti ? Answer in 4-5 sentences in English.
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