Banksy

'The people who run our cities don't understand graffiti because they think nothing has the right to exist unless it makes a profit (...) The people who truly deface our neighbourhoods are the companies that scrawl their giant slogans across buildings and buses trying to make us buy their stuff. They expect to be able to shout their message in your face from every surface but you are never allowed to answer them back.'  (Banksy, Wall and Piece)

When researching the topic of outdoor advertising and different subversive strategies the act of graffiti could be considered an act of detornement, therefore, it seemed a relevant research point. An obvious key figure of this is the elusive, British, street artist, Banksy. The anonymous artist often uses outdoor walls as his canvas to create expressive images often conveying a political message (the work occupies a public space). In 1993 Banksy was first noted for his freehand graffiti, however, by the year 2000 Banksy had began using a stencil technique which became his distinctive and recognisable style (www.britannica.com). Below are some highlighted points from the text 'The True Counterfeits of Banksy - Radical Walls of Complicity and Subversion' by Eva Branscome which I thought raised some interesting points about Banksy's work and methods.   

Has Banksy become  'A glamorised subversive superhero'? I think it's interesting how prints of Banksy work are reproduced and sold, arguably they are consumed, replicas can be found everywhere from wall stencils to people having tattoos Banksy recognisable images. It could be considered ironic that  the work of someone who uses graffiti and public space as a method of subversion has been commercialised and commodified.