While the actual practice of the art fairly defies categorization, it is worth noting that street art, in many ways, has achieved remarkable renown and, from this standpoint, cannot arguably be said to represent the Avante-Garde any longer. (Subsumed under the umbrella is graffiti art, Lock-On art, flyposting art, stencil art, mural art, performance art and so much more). Some of Banksy’s more recent contributions, in his most recent ‘artist-in-residence’ work in New York, appear to suggest a stale and overly-hyped shell of its previously innovative and critical character. And I’m sure that he’s appraised of this, and you can even see it in some of the forthcoming objects.
One of the most recent objects, “Art Sale,” is not one object but a series of original stencils that he did for the purpose of vending them publicly, near Central Park, in a nondescript temporary booth entitled ‘spray art’ person-ed by an older gentleman. Selling the works for $60 dollars but actually only experiencing around $400 in sales total, one reading of this object/performance is that people, in general, cannot recognize art unless they are led to it, appraised of its value, having it identified and properly explained to them by ‘authoritative’ critics.
This cynical view, however, was largely validated by how many were unable to recognize his work or who failed to ask about authorship, as those who actually purchased anything did so unbeknownst of its origins and were really just desiring of something to fill some wall or to commemorate their trip to the place. An alternative, marginal but far more interesting reading of this object is, in my opinion, however, that people are losing interest in Banksy, a reality that he is probably aware of and concerned about to some degree. Sure, one might reasonably and predictably object, “if they knew it was his work, they would’ve paid immense sums for it.” And I wouldn’t argue and would likely concede this point. But I would retort that, at this point, it is a matter of image, of status, and not about innovation or the production of the art objects themselves. That is, his art has basically lost its edge, and he is no longer defining what we might reasonably term the Avante-Garde.
This is how I think we should interpret the status of Banksy’s work, not merely as something that should be synonymous with his name. For the name and image have, for so long, obscured and obfuscated what is actually being done and left public; although, admittedly, this wasn’t always the case. Perhaps people just wanted to, at one time, to laud it, celebrate it, praise it, purchase it for the express purpose of appropriating it. Fearful of what it could do, they knew they must have it to keep it off the streets, from public eye, public appreciation, so that they could better understand this countercultural figure and the potent nature of his critiques. If this were the case, they have already won, and we have already lost. More likely, they just understood his edge, they say what he was doing to be experimental and suffused with present issues regarding the state of the public arena in the era of privatization, and they wanted to, ironically, privately mull over some of the questions that he raises, if objects can be said to do so at all.
In whatever case, art has intriguing capacities for foretelling ways of doing, seeing, and being in the world, but the market understands them; it is up to artists then, to appreciate the concerns that they present to the production of the new, the novel and hold out for this very purpose.
There is a lingering chance, though, this is just the normal course of the production of art and its dissemination, but this explanation would take us out of the process, and we are important players who should never be disregarded.
I just know that, if any icon has achieved such notoriety, then something disconcerting is afoot, and we should not merely welcome such icons with an uncritical, celebratory, awed eye. For is precisely at these moments when we are most vulnerable, when we become deceived, distracted and diverted from is actually happening, if anything can be said to be happening.
Bearer of Pity 