Banksy

Banksy is one of the most important urban artists to emerge in Europe. An artist with a lifestyle and a way of being his own that characterize him and that hides his true identity from the media, the art world and even the police. Many speculations have arisen regarding his life and he has only appeared publicly before the famous newspaper The Guardian , who describes him as a young man, with a tall, white, blond, silver tooth.

Banksy Biography

The exact biography of Banksy is actually unknown , although there are several people who know that he was born in 1974 and that his childhood was lived in England , in a place called Bristol. His father was a photocopier technician, who in addition to working as a butcher was also involved in the technique of graffiti at the end of the 80s. His artistic career began around 1992 and 1994 and thanks to his rapid fame he managed to get into an important exhibition in London in 2000, where it became known worldwide.

But in reality, the true identity of this author known as Banksy turns out to be a real mystery , mainly because he does not have data from his biography. Speculation says that he is in his thirties , English by birth, and white in complexion . The only thing that can be confirmed with certainty is that this artist is a self-taught artist who has managed to introduce his pieces in museums and exhibitions.

Is it Robert Del Naja?

Robert Del Naja is a singer for a band known by the name of Massive Attack . It has long been believed to be Banksy himself, the famous graffiti creator. These speculations began to emerge in 2013 when a solo exhibition of the artist’s work was held. This theory took force when one of his friends talking about the works of the unknown street author referred to Robert Del Naja telling him that he considered him a brilliant artist , realizing the error, he abruptly changed the subject. However, despite pressure from the media British this information could not be corroborated as the singer’s agents refuse to confirm the information.

Banksy Characteristics

Banksy’s work is based on the expression of satirical pieces that criticize politics, pop culture, the different ethnic groups in the world and morals, combining writing with graffiti and using a great variety of stencils in his works. They have a type of street art that has become very popular in the world, but mainly in England. He is responsible for using urban art to, through it, promote different types of visions with respect to the mainstream media .

In his works he tends to repeat some themes such as rats, typical tourist places, soldiers, police officers making searches of children or other policemen, he has even dared to represent officers kissing each other. It has even been widely criticized for using images of Christ holding various gift bags. The messages that he seeks to express through his work are based on opposition to war , anti-capitalism and anti-establishment.

Technique

His technique is based on street art using stencils , gray tones and some colors . With it he seeks to express his ideas against a large number of problems that affect society and makes use of satire and criticism in each of them.

Acknowledgments

The recognition of Banksy has not yet been done through ceremonies, however, worldwide he is undoubtedly one of the most recognized artists in street art , a fame that has led him to travel the world and perform a large number of Secret exhibitions that have unleashed uncertainty, gradually increasing his fame.

Influence of Blek le Rat

Blek le Rat was a Paris graffiti characterwho filled the streets of the place with his works and from whom Banksy took inspiration to make his work. It was from him that he learned to use the technique of the template and the spray to be able to express his criticism and complaints about what is not fair for him.

Banksy Outstanding Works

Among his main works are the following:

• Wall of Shame : he did it in the West Bank on the most important wall of the place and his graffiti expressed messages against it, girls trying to escape using balloons and images of the sky and landscapes, a real action against the wall.
• Girl with a Pierced Eardum : which in Spanish means the girl with a perforated eardrum, which is actually a parody of a famous painting. In his work, he changes the jewel in the original painting for a security alarm .
• The son of an immigrant from Syria : a work that portrays Steve Jobs in a refugee camp and while wearing a backpack and a computer brand Macintosh in his hand as a complaint to the conditions of the Syrian refugees .

Where to see his works

In his controversial and hidden life, Banksy has managed to disguise himself on different occasions to be able to enter important museums and thus place his work clandestinely . Some of his artistic works can be seen in the following places:

• Tate Modern Gallery located in London
• The Brooklyn Museum in the United States
• The British Museum in London
• The MOMA , Museum of modern art.
• At the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
• American Museum of Natural History located in New York City.

Importance

The importance of Banksy lies in its main objective which is to be able to use art as a weapon in the face of militancy and political activism and for this, it uses large doses of irony to criticize and question those in power, the institutions that aim to dominate human beings and the different policies that harm the world.

Curiosities about Banksy

Some curiosities of Banksy are mentioned below:

• This author appears in one of the episodes of The Simpsons , during season number 22 and is shown in a part of the opening of the episode that shows the city of Springfield full of different graffiti made by the artist in which he depicts dark Asian factories where workers are observed using dead animals for the production of The Simpsons products.
• The name Banksy is actually a pseudonym that the artist uses to avoid being recognized despite being the most representative person in street art. Recent studies indicate that his name is Robin Gunningham .
• It is believed that he was part of a band known as DBZ in the 1990s and that from then on his fame began to grow rapidly.
• He managed to place a stuffed rat attached to a poster in the Natural History Museum in London and in the British Museum he was able to put a supposed piece of rock art that showed a scene where a supermarket cart was carrying out a hunt.