Banksy in Oceanside?

So, popular celeb gossip website, TMZ, has reported a sighting of graffiti artist Banksy at work here in our own backyard. The photo is of the side of Oceanside's Bull Taco Shop on the corner of Coast Highway and Cassidy St. While an obvious display of Banksy style, we can't help but be skeptical. It seems as though this may be a "fake". (And/or, just a really good marketing ploy by Bull Taco, cashing in on the hype surrounding the artist and his films nomination at the Academy Awards this Sunday.) And with that being said, is there really such thing as authenticity with an artist who no doubt has several people collectively producing his artwork? This recent pop-up has sparked a lot of debate, and I want to hear what you think! What do you think about Banksy as an artist, or is he now a brand? Maybe both? Is he just a rip-off of Blek le Rat, an older graffiti artist who created rats long before Banksy started showing them in his artwork? It's all speculation, I want your opinions!

Check out the coverage here and here. . . and while your at it, go check out the piece and decide for yourself what it's all about.

Banksy and Exit Through the Gift Shop

A few weeks ago some of my arty friends and I got together to drink some wine and watch Exit Through the Gift Shop, the new movie/documentary about street art and fame.  Let me just say I love love love Bansky and Shepard Fairey!  But man do I not love MBW.  I have heard rumors that Banksy and MBW are the same person but I REFUSE to even give this thought a slight possibility of existence.  MBW represents all that is wrong in the art world, though he is an interesting science experiment.   

The below is the description of the film on Bansky’s Website:

This is the inside story of Street Art - a brutal and revealing account of what happens when fame, money and vandalism collide. Exit Through the Gift Shop follows an eccentric shop-keeper turned amateur film-maker as he attempts to capture many of the world's most infamous vandals on camera, only to have a British stencil artist named Banksy turn the camcorder back on its owner with wildly unexpected results.

One of the most provocative films about art ever
made, Exit Through the Gift Shop is a fascinating study
of low-level criminality, comradeship and incompetence.
By turns shocking, hilarious and absurd, this is an
enthralling modern-day fairytale... with bolt cutters.

Since the release of this movie I have come across articles about a gentleman that thinks he figured out who Banksy is through his financial records.  [For all you not familiar with Banksy, he is a street artist based in the UK that has been anonymously making art for over a decade.] It has been a few weeks since this article came out and the ebay item has been pulled down.  To my knowledge no one has come out publicly saying they know who he is. 

So I would like to know what you think.  Do you think this is a publicity stunt by Banksy and his people?  Do you ever want to know who he is?  Do you think this is just some ‘not nice guy’ trying to make a buck at someone else’s expense?  I like to believe in the purity of creation and that Banksy is Banksy and not MBW and hope to die not knowing his real name.

To all the street artists out there keep on doing what you are doing!  And to Banksy’s crew and friends, you guys are great.  You are incredible people to have protected his identity for so long.  Google image Banksy and check out the wonderful images of his work!  And watch the movie, though you will want to turn it off at the mid point it is good to watch it all the way through.

Tara

Art Ninja