Mystery graffiti artist Banksy is making it difficult for the art world to commercialize his work, says an expert.
“He makes it increasingly difficult to remove his works from their place of origin,” said art historian Ulrich Blanché from the University of Heidelberg to the German Press Agency. “He makes it harder for people to make money out of it.” The artist’s works have become increasingly three-dimensional in recent years and include other objects.
New work: “Valentine’s Day Mascara”
Yesterday, after a Banksy work turned up in Margate, southern England, an elementary part of it – a real freezer – was removed. The original motif, spray-painted on a house wall, shows a 1950s-style woman wearing an apron and yellow gloves. She has a black eye and is missing a tooth. When the chest was still in front of the wall, two legs painted on the wall stuck out, as can be seen on Banksy’s Instagram channel.
Two close-ups published by the artist focus on the woman’s battered but smiling face. The work is called “Valentine’s Day Mascara”. Observers suspected that the socially critical artist wanted to draw attention to domestic violence on the occasion of Valentine’s Day.
Community brings back freezer
However, while eating, the freezer is back in its position. “For health and safety reasons, work had to be carried out on the freezer,” said Thanet’s local council on Wednesday. The container is now safe and has therefore been returned. The council now wants to examine with the owner of the property how the plant can be secured. The work sprayed on a house wall in Margate, Kent, became known on Tuesday. A few hours later, the municipal council had the chest picked up.
Social grievances in focus
Banksy is believed to be from the western English city of Bristol, but his exact identity is unknown. In his works, he repeatedly addresses social grievances.
The artist was aware that the works on site did not remain in their original form for long, said Blanché, who has been dealing intensively with Banksy for decades. “The work is for everyone and the work is for the photo,” says the expert. A trend towards video as a form of representation of his works can also be seen.
