Banksy’s Graffiti: Between Vandalism and Artwork
A Brief Background:
Banksy is a street artist whose identity is still unknown. Allegations say he was born in Bristol, England in 1974. Banksy started his artwork or what is also acknowledged as vandalism in the early 1990s. It later became viewed as a kind of art. His artwork started off as a graffiti artist whose main purpose is to deliver political, war critiques, capitalism messages to the public. Banksy later discussed other subjects such as members of the royal family, policemen, rats, apes etc… He apparently has the attitude of a rebellion. A documentary about Banksy, Exit through the Gift Shop, was released in 2010. It shows how much interested the public has became in him.
The Political and Social Implications of Banksy’s Street Art:
As mentioned previously, Banksy’s art work consisted on dealing with political and social implications such as political themes, satirically critiquing war, capitalism, hypocrisy and greed. However; there are certain graffiti figures that are debatable and that also lingered in the history of this particular kind of art, for instance the West Bank barrier and The Village Voice.
An example of Banksy’s political and social implication art work emerged together, and according to Banksy’s refugee piece shows us how to protest — and grieve published in The Guardian by Suzanne Moore, is the piece that faces the French Embassy of the poster girl from the Les Misérables with tears in her eyes and a CS gas canister next to her. A barcode is found right next to this piece which takes the observer to a video of teargas being used in refugee camps in Calais. The message behind this piece is to spread awareness against violence toward refugees. Yet, the barcode idea was not new. Sweza, an artist from Berlin, used the barcode trick to help people view the video or audio of what has been wiped away.
A further political and social implication example is the mural of the son of a Syrian immigrant, Steve Jobs, transporting the unwanted structures of Dismaland to help refugees build emergency houses. This drawing is absolutely ironic because Steve Jobs is a man who made a change in the American economic world. The fact that Steve Jobs is a Syrian migrant who moved the American economy makes it ironic especially that Donald Trump is currently attacking all refugees and specifically Syrian ones.
The Satire and Dark Humor Found in Banksy’s Art Work:
Banksy tackles issues communities are suffering in a satire or dark humor matter. For instance, the monkey with a sign that says “Laugh now, but one day we’ll be in charge.” This piece reflects that technology is taking over humans’ labor, and therefore unemployment is accumulating. What Banksy was trying to say is if people are still going to depend this much on technology, there will be time where apes are going to rule. The dark humor is spotted in the fact that apes might be in charge, but at the end of the day and at some point it is true.
Another example for satire and dark humor marked in his work is the rat holding a painting brush with a note that says “Our time will come.” The similarity between the rat and Banksy is apparent. They are both night creatures, and are both looked down upon by the society. What emphasized that Banksy represented himself using a rat is the painting brush the rat is holding. However; the phrase topping the picture shows that at a certain time artists will be able to take over societies. The satire in this piece was directed to Banksy himself, but in a matter of showing how people view him as knowing that amid a certain time he will be able to make change.
What are the messages Banksy is trying to convey?
There are numerous points Banksy is trying to convey such as racism, politics, capitalism, violence, wars, domination, freedom etc… For instance, the Steve Jobs mural delivers the message of discrimination against refugees when they are people just like anyone else. Banksy is trying to emphasize that these refugees would not have immigrated if there was no war in their mother land. He is also trying to stress that even though Steve Jobs was adopted by an American family, he would not accept the mistreatment Syrians are receiving in the United States.
An additional example of the messages Banksy is trying to convey is the Window on the West Bank barrier in Palestine. It shows that behind this wall the Israelis have built to incarcerate the Palestinians there is a life, a beautiful one. Banksy’s purpose in this painting is to inform people that it is not the Israelis right to occupy a country, and prohibit its people from living peacefully inside of it.
Graffiti and Cultural Production:
Graffiti cannot be generalized as a cultural production because it expresses ones-self. Yet, it can be addressed as a small-scale cultural production. There are basically two subfields of cultural productions, a small-scale production and a large-scale production. According to Graffiti and Cultural Production in Contemporary Cairo Articulating Local and Global Elements of Popular Culture book, they can be distinguished by their degree of autonomy from the field of power. The difference between both is that a small-scale production is characterized by a higher degree of autonomy and vice versa.
Graffiti, as a whole, is type of small-scale cultural production. It reached its uttermost amid 1970s and 1980s. It received a lot of criticism, and the subject in general was debatable. Some viewed graffiti as a relationship with commerce, and other viewed it as an art. The ones interested in street art or graffiti are divided into the enthusiasts and the opponents of the commoditization of the subculture’s products. What designates the refusal of the market and its observation of graffiti as a purely artistic product is the appearance of the post-graffiti phenomenon to allude to the shift of spray-can graffiti from the spaces of the streets and subways into Manhattan galleries during the mid-1980s.
Suzan Philips announces that the legal and illegal intersect and enable cultural groups to define themselves through one of the defining features of the graffiti subculture is its illegitimacy that creates meetings.
Banksy as a street artist was put in the same debate of whether his work is a relationship with commerce or art. To illustrate, the Balloon Girl painting found on the West Bank barrier in Palestine cannot be viewed as a relationship of commerce for several reasons. First, the wall between Gaza and the rest of Palestine’s occupied land is sort of imaginary which mean anyone can do anything on it. Second, the message behind the painting is absolutely expressive, for it means the children behind this wall are seeking freedom. Finally, the balloon girl painting is a beautiful painting owing to the fact that it is a shadow of the girl, yet it is very expressive.
Difference between Commercial Art and Banksy’s:
Commercial art is the kind of art that is used for advertisement and selling. On the other hand, Banksy’s art is completely unprofitable. He started his street art work, for it was the only location that would help him show, and he is still willing to paint on the street to prove to himself graffiti was not a skeptical plan in the first place. Banksy believes that commercial art is a failure for a graffiti artist which implies that he looks down upon commercial art.
Banksy’s art and commercial art have one thing in common they are both trying to convey a message. However; Banksy’s art is for free, and in the face of everyone, whereas commercial art is exclusively for the Bourgeois. Commercial art is found in museums usually. Only certain levels of people are interested in museums. In addition, the art found in museums is acquired for money, and might deliver only specific messages. Banksy’s art does not focus on a specific subject only, it discusses several types of political and social issues such as capitalism, racism, violence, wars, freedom, domination etc… And of course people who visit museums, also from a high social class, do not endure problems as such.
Conclusion:
Banksy’s street art has several social and political implications such as political themes, satirically critiquing war, capitalism, hypocrisy and greed. Every single graffiti Banksy has drawn holds a certain message he is willing to deliver to the public. Satire and dark humor were found in all his art work, for the messages he conveyed were taken care of in a dark humor or satire manner. It is a smart way to impose an idea in a very smooth and funny way although at the end of the day the observers are laughing at their own selves. The messages Banksy aims to convey are the ones societies, cultures, communities, politics, religions and humanity are suffering from. Banksy’s art observers relate to his work in the same way he is trying to deliver the message owing to the fact it is simple and easy. Banksy’s art and commercial art share one thing in common they are both attempting to pass one message. Yet, Banksy’s art is seeking nothing in return, and anyone can see it, while commercial art is known to be only for the Bourgeois. Commercial art is often found in museums. Banksy’s identity is still unknown, yet his work will always take place in venues. He is considered as the talk of the century. Few are those who consider what his art as vandalism, but they cannot bluff about him being a true artist.
References:
Anthony, A. (2014). Banksy: The artist who’s driven to the wall. The Guardian.
Banksy ‘may abandon commercial art’. (2013). BBC News.
Hamilton, K. (2013). Village Voice Exclusive: An Interview With Banksy, Street Art Cult Hero, International Man of Mystery. The Village Voice.
Hudson, M. (2015). Banksy, Dismaland, Weston-super-Mare, review: ‘gleeful, adolescent despair’. The Telegraph.
Joseph, C. (2008). Graffiti artist Banksy unmasked … as a former public schoolboy from middle-class suburbia. The Daily Mail.
Meredith, C. (2014). Banksy Artwork Destroyed For ‘Being Racist’ In Clacton-on-Sea. The Huffington Post.
Moore, S. (2016). Banksy’s refugee piece shows us how to protest — and grieve. The Guardian.
Nicoarea, G. (January 2013). Graffiti and cultural production in contemporary Cairo: Articulating local and global elements of popular culture, January 2013.
Salup, M. (September 29, 2011). Street art as a model for contemporary social media, The Huffington Post.
