Wouldn't it be lovely to return home or to wake up one morning , to see that your front wall has been adorned with a "Banksy " painting like the ones below ?
What a pleasant surprise that would be for me.
Very romantic , indeed !
What a pleasant surprise that would be for me.
Very romantic , indeed !
Banksy is the iconic best known graffiti artist not only in the UK , but world wide.
Many people would love to wake up and find that one of their walls has been adorned by a high-priced " Banksy ".
It is the stuff that dreams are made of ; and such dreams have come true for lots of people in London and other parts of the UK ; who have been blessed by a surprise visit from "Banksy"
A large and popular Banksy art on public or private walls could be worth even as much as the price of the building itself ; considering that such free Banksy graffiti on their walls, if sold could fetch the owners at least £250,000.
Such fortunate house owners , usually would remove the wall with the Banksy and sell it to the highest bidder.
Such fortunate house owners , usually would remove the wall with the Banksy and sell it to the highest bidder.
As with all graffiti artists, Banksy's works are visible to all ; but Banksy 's real name and identity have remained a mystery ; despite efforts by many to catch Banksy in the act and to lift the veil on his true ID.
He is a recluse artist , nobody has had the honour of seeing his face ; except those who have caught a fleeting glimpse of him ; they describe him as " a young , tall, slim- built , white male in his mid or late 20s, donning a hoodie".
Banksy does his stuff , wherever he is "led " to do it ; he plasters peoples' walls and he melts away.
I think his ability to remain anonymous adds to his pleasure of doing what Banksy loves; and for this reason, Banksy's art works are highly sought after world-wide .
Banksy does his stuff , wherever he is "led " to do it ; he plasters peoples' walls and he melts away.
I think his ability to remain anonymous adds to his pleasure of doing what Banksy loves; and for this reason, Banksy's art works are highly sought after world-wide .
But some aggrieved people do not find Banksy's " unsolicited visitations" funny , at all .
Like they view all graffiti art , aggrieved persons see Banksy's work as "vandalism" which should not be encouraged , at all .
They are incensed that Banksy has "defaced " their walls and have vowed to sue him for wilful damage to property and for causing a "public nuisance".
Like they view all graffiti art , aggrieved persons see Banksy's work as "vandalism" which should not be encouraged , at all .
They are incensed that Banksy has "defaced " their walls and have vowed to sue him for wilful damage to property and for causing a "public nuisance".
But how can you sue someone whom nobody can identify and why would anyone want to sue a person who has been generous enough to spend his time , efforts , talents and money , painting walls with valuable art work worth at least six-figure pounds sterling per piece?
One man's meat........
Thousands of people appreciate Banksy's beautiful unique stencil art , leading to the high price tag for his paintings which nowadays fetch at least £250, 000 each.
Through his agents , Banksy has had very successful exhibitions raking in sales worth millions of pounds sterling.
Before the Queen's Jubilee celebrations last year summer , residents of Wood Green in North London one fine day , were pleasantly surprised to find a large "Banksy" adorning the side wall of one of the many shops in that area.
Wood Green Shopping City is one of London's biggest and busiest shopping malls. It is located in Wood Green High Street , which is one of London's prime commercial centres.
This area of London never sleeps; it is bustling with activities all day , all night , even till dawn; in some of its 24 hour shops , bars , restaurants and night clubs,
People wondered how and when Banksy managed to do his stuff in such a busy area?
Maybe Banksy did it during the evening rush hour when people were either rushing home or rushing in and out shops and bars ; too busy to notice anything like that.
Wood Green Shopping City is one of London's biggest and busiest shopping malls. It is located in Wood Green High Street , which is one of London's prime commercial centres.
This area of London never sleeps; it is bustling with activities all day , all night , even till dawn; in some of its 24 hour shops , bars , restaurants and night clubs,
People wondered how and when Banksy managed to do his stuff in such a busy area?
Maybe Banksy did it during the evening rush hour when people were either rushing home or rushing in and out shops and bars ; too busy to notice anything like that.
Word soon spread that Banksy had indeed confirmed he did it and he had given the painting named "Slave Labour" as a Jubilee gift to Wood Green community.
People were very pleased to hear that Haringey council which Wood Green community belongs to , was the only London council to receive a Banksy during the Jubilee and this was considered as an honour.
North London boasts of being home to a high number of world- famous celebrities.
Being the top choice residential area for the rich and famous in London , there were suspicions that Banksy could indeed be a resident of the community or he is living in any of the areas in North London , not far from Wood Green ?
Since its surprise arrival last year summer, the beautiful art work named "Slave Labour " had been pride to the Wood Green community as a tourist attraction .
The perspex- covered painting on the street wall had attracted millions of people from all over the world. Their visits to the shops nearby , ended with viewing the "Slave Labour"on the wall.
People were very pleased to hear that Haringey council which Wood Green community belongs to , was the only London council to receive a Banksy during the Jubilee and this was considered as an honour.
North London boasts of being home to a high number of world- famous celebrities.
Being the top choice residential area for the rich and famous in London , there were suspicions that Banksy could indeed be a resident of the community or he is living in any of the areas in North London , not far from Wood Green ?
Since its surprise arrival last year summer, the beautiful art work named "Slave Labour " had been pride to the Wood Green community as a tourist attraction .
The perspex- covered painting on the street wall had attracted millions of people from all over the world. Their visits to the shops nearby , ended with viewing the "Slave Labour"on the wall.
" Slave Labour " on the wall in Wood Green , before it was stolen.
Visitors at the site before it was stolen
A few weeks ago , the community was alarmed to discover that the Banksy had been removed , stolen !
It's spot where Banksy had placed it was empty .
The public reaction was one of outrage and shock , leading to public protests.
Details of the backlash emerged after a stencil of a rat holding a sign that reads 'Why?' appeared on the Haringey wall, next to the blank spot where 'Slave Labour' used to be.
Banksy did not remove it , who did?
The public reaction was one of outrage and shock , leading to public protests.
Details of the backlash emerged after a stencil of a rat holding a sign that reads 'Why?' appeared on the Haringey wall, next to the blank spot where 'Slave Labour' used to be.
Banksy did not remove it , who did?
There was a swift reaction from Banksy himself; who came to paint two new graffiti tagged "DANGER , THIEVES" and another one of "RATTY ", Banksy's buddy , a giant rat holding a "WHY" poster; on the blank spot where Banksy's "Slave Labour" used to be.
It is thought the rat could be the reclusive graffiti artist's way of voicing his verdict on the row over his original piece.
It is thought the rat could be the reclusive graffiti artist's way of voicing his verdict on the row over his original piece.
Dear old "Ratty".
Today , this one metre square " RATTY " art piece , with its "Why ?" poster ; has become famous world wide and on it own , it is being valued at an estimated value of at least £100,000.00; even before the return of "Slave Labour" .
All thanks to the uproar created by the missing "Slave Labour" ,
Today , this one metre square " RATTY " art piece , with its "Why ?" poster ; has become famous world wide and on it own , it is being valued at an estimated value of at least £100,000.00; even before the return of "Slave Labour" .
All thanks to the uproar created by the missing "Slave Labour" ,
The blank spot on the wall soon attracted thousands of visitors, including myself .
As at today , some artists have decided to paint their own work , showing a Banksy imitation Nun painting ?( looks like a real Banksy to me) , a Valentine heart and orange colour graffiti , painted on the blank spot ; thereby underlining the painful reminder that the original Banksy painting is no longer there .
Angry protests were organised to demand for the return of the art piece when news spread that not only had the art been stolen , it had surfaced about 4500 miles away in the USA and that the "Slave Boy" was about to be sold to the highest bidder in a Florida auction !
Local residents, who had become attached to the famous street painting , were left furious that a piece of work given to the community for free could be sold for profit.
Outraged art fans had been bombarding the auction house with abusive calls and e-mails.
Frederic Thut, owner of Fine Art Auctions Miami, previously insisted the sale of the artwork is legitimate, but admitted he had been inundated with angry phone calls and e-mails from the UK.
Many people could agree with the idea that the owners of the building have a legitimate right to sell the art in art auction because Banksy painting on THEIR wall was unsolicited and without their permission and so the piece of art is their property. But where was Banksy supposed to place his anonymous gift painting to Wood Green?
Hang it on thin air ?
The good news here is that the protest about the auction of " Slave Labour " has paid off.
A few days ago, the breaking news was that the planned auction of "Slave Labour " had been stopped and it had been retrieved from the Florida auction house, at the last minute, where a bid of $600,000 ( about £500,000) was already placed on it.
In the UK and worldwide, from public places and peoples' homes, many precious art works have been stolen to order ; and sold , never to be seen again because most stolen art are kept in secret vaults by art collectors .
But this story of the Wood Green "Banksy " is different. It has been saved from a similar fate because its present location and the faces of those who tried to sell it is now public knowledge .
Retrieving AND and replacing the " Slave Labour" back to its place on the Wood Green wall, would go a long way to appease the hurt and anger caused by its disappearance in the Wood Green community.
I know this fact because I live in Hornsey Park ,also in North London and a few minutes drive from Wood Green.
Some people could argue that after it has been retrieved , returning "Slave Labour" to its former spot would be a fool-hardy thing as this would attract even more attention and attempts from international professional art thieves who would soon after prise it from the wall .
I don't think so because Banksy's "Slave Labour " ( and "Ratty") , because of the protests from the British public , both Banksy art pieces are now world famous.
As such , they have become " too hot to handle "; too risky to be sold and too difficult to find buyers for them.
Of course there are eccentric art collectors who are willing to pay a very high price for stolen famous art masterpieces which they would stash away in their cellars underneath their mansions for their own private viewing only.
Where is their pleasure then; what is the point of owning a "Banksy" , or any other art masterpiece which you dare not show off to your friends and to the world?
As the retrieved "Slave Labour " is on its way back home , where it belongs; it is time for an exchange of back -patting by the residents of Wood Green , for a job well-done .
Kudos to People Power !
Here are just a few of Banksy's gifts to the world ; which he painted on public and private walls.
