banksy tour guide

as predicted a couple of years ago

i kind of think banksy jumped the shark with the fake exhibits in museums, but the publication of 'wall and piece', however nice a book, finally did for him. the little black paperbacks, which were initially hard to get, still maintained the sense of secret, but 'wall and piece' was the coffee table book last christmas - the big hit compilation album that signals the end of a career. he needs to give up for a decade, or only stencil rats in places that almost no-one will find.

Comments

[Kester]

I say give the guy a break and let him enjoy his success. It's us who prefer the mystique... why don't we go out and look for someone 'new' and 'exciting'?

[steve]

but kester, the fleetingness and nose thumbed at authority are part of the meaning of the works, as well as the key formal constraint. they operate as an urban 'wink', which a tour guide undermines. if they were purely pictorial or graphic this transition would be less damaging [might even be good for them]. i think the one place where his work retains its full force is on the palestine wall.