Don't expect the usual fat lettered tags when it comes to Banksy's graffiti.
This mysterious, guerilla artist has been leaving his mark wherever he goes with his elaborate and often times controversial images. The picture above denotes a man searching through a young girl's basket with her dog waiting by her side. However, because of our cultural knowledge, we can automatically recognize the girl as being Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz and her dog Todo-it's clear that Banksy is trying to convey a much broader message. His picture connotes our society's paranoia and distrust in a time that is so drenched in fear that we have to question even the innocent and goodhearted Dorothy. Here's another one of his works that successfully gets the same point across:
Banksy's social commentary covers an array of different topics, from the evils of capitalism to animal cruelty. What I like most about his graffiti is his ability to take something so familiar in our society that we wouldn't normally think twice about, but then add a new spin to it in order to make us question our cultural values and beliefs.
Below are a couple of videos from an exhibition Banksy had in New York City to show the relationship between nature/animals and ethics. All you PETA fans are in for a treat.
I love the shock value and brilliance of Banksy's work.. especially of the video clips you showed!
ReplyDeleteThe first image reminds me of the children's book Number the Stars, by Lois Lowery, where the girl's basket is searched by the Nazi soldier.. Anyone remember that? It's disturbing to see Banksy takes away innocence from innocuous events, people, and things. I like how he delivers his messages.