Bansky
Bansky is one of the most elusive artists of our time. To this day, no one is certain of his identity. According to Wikipedia, Banksy “began as an artist at the age of 14, was expelled from school, and served time in prison for petty crime.” He is described as a “street artist, political activist and film director whose real name and identity remain unconfirmed.”
Banksy creates art through vandalism. A good share of his artwork is graffiti in public places like buildings, streets, statues, signs, walls, doors, etc. Cynthia Yang wrote an interesting piece called Bansky: Vandal or Artist? You can read it HERE.
Other Bansky works are on saleable surfaces such as canvas, paper, moveable objects, etc. Bansky has an agent who sells his work, usually at auction, but there is a collection of of his paintings at the Austin Museum of Popular Culture, as well.
Bansky also publishes books about his art. The best selling of these is Wall and Piece. The book promotion on Amazon offers this description:
Banksy, Britain's now-legendary "guerilla" street artist, has painted the walls, streets, and bridges of towns and cities throughout the world. Not only did he smuggle his pieces into four of New York City's major art museums, he's also "hung" his work at London's Tate Gallery and adorned Israel's West Bank barrier with satirical images. Banksy's identity remains unknown, but his work is unmistakable—with prints selling for as much as $45,000.
There is only one source for authentication of Bansky’s work. The official body is called Pest Control and applies only to his commercial works, usually silkscreened prints. On the Pest Control website, this FAQ explains What is Pest Control? “We’re the office that handles the paperwork for the graffiti artist Banksy. We keep detailed records of all the artwork, answer enquiries and intercept hate mail. We are the sole point of contact for the artist.”
It is generally estimated that Bansky earns about $20 million per year. Banksy's Devolved Parliament, which replaces British politicians in the House of Commons with orangutans and chimpanzees, sold for $12.2 million.
More recently, a Bansky painting titled Game Changer that honored the pandemic’s health care workers in the U.K. sold for $23.2 million. Proceeds, including the artist’s commission, will be used to fund health organizations and charities across the U.K.
The Associated Press reported, “the work by the mystery street artist, titled “Game Changer,” first appeared on a wall at Southampton General Hospital in southern England in May, during the first wave of the pandemic. The black-and-white picture depicts a young boy sitting on the floor playing with a nurse superhero toy, as Batman and Spiderman toy figures lie in a wastepaper basket next to him. At the time it went up, the hospital said Banksy left a note for workers there saying: Thanks for all you’re doing. I hope this brightens the place up a bit, even if it’s only black and white.”
It is believed that Bansky grew up in Bristol, England and now resides in London, but this is unconfirmed. Here are a few more pieces of his art.
Indicative of Bansky’s anti-societal leanings is his copyright policy shown below.
