Thursday, June 14, 2018

Art of Banksy exhibition - sell-out or marketing genius

We have ($35) tickets to the Art of Banksy exhibition this weekend, an unauthorized show of many of his works, both well-knkwn and otherwise, in a trendy pop-up gallery in a trendily-dilapidated "urban" ex-warehouse zone in Toronto's trendy, semi-gentrified West End (very close, as it happens to a cirque training and fitness establishment I used to go to - see how trendy I am).
I quite like sole of Banksy's images - they are clever, ironic and irreverent - although I wouldn't describe myself as a fan of an acolyte. I was, though, in two minds about going to see this show. One, it is not authorized by Banksy (it was put together by his one-time agent and "affiliate" Steve Lazaridis). Two, it's not cheap. And three, it just seems kind of wrong seeing Banksy's work in a gallery setting, rather than discovering it accidentally under a bridge seomewhere, or something of that kind.
There is certainly a part of me that feels that Banksy has maybe sold out, but then if he has not actually authorised it, and is presumably not personally making lots of money from it, then in what way is he selling out. And, anyway, selling out from what? His work pokes fun at capitalism and the military-industrial complex, but is the man (woman?) himself necessarily a revolutionary firebrand, or just a guy (gal?) with a handy way with an artistic meme and a nifty line in self-promotion. Remember, the works in the exhibition are not ripped from the unsurpassed and portlands of Europe; these are gallery-ready versions and prints of some of his more iconic works (yes, he does produce such things) and works on loan from collectors who bought them at Banksy's own commercial shows (yes, he does those too), as well as photos of outdoor installations. His work already plays fast and loose with copyrights and intellectual property, so what exactly does "unauthorized" mean in this context (even if Canadian law does explicitly state that artworks cannot be exhibited without the owner's permission)? Whether you think he planned his commercial success or not, success he most definitely has had (the works in this exhibition alone are estimated to be worth some $35 million). And yes, you most certainly do have to exit through the gift shop (although, in this self-consciously postmodern environment, this could easily be some heavy-handed irony). I can even imagine today's theft of one of the works to be part of the show's promotion and hype-building (after all, property is theft, brother).
So, yes, it can make you a bit cynical (Now Magazine certainly is, as is even the more mainstream Globe and Mail). Or maybe it is people like me who have sold out by even attending this kind of an event.

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