Banksy the likely author of obscure new Venice artwork
May 23, 2019
A video posted on the Instagram account of the ever-elusive British artist Banksy documents a new installation showing a controversial huge cruise ship docking in Venice's lagoon. It appears to be the artist's own work.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/F. Hörhager
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Coinciding with the Venice Biennale Arte, which opened May 11, a one-minute video posted on Banksy's Instagram account on Wednesday begins with what appears to be a local art vendor constructing his stall near St. Mark's Square in Venice.
"Setting out my stall at the Venice Biennale," a caption at the start of the video begins. "Despite being the largest and most prestigious art event in the world, for some reason I've never been invited," added the artist, likely the secretive Banksy himself, whose real identity remains hidden from the public.
'Venice in Oil'
The video clip shows a man, whose face is obscured throughout, setting up nine canvases in the public outdoor art market. The artworks form a montage of an enormous cruise ship floating in the Italian city's Grand Canal, surrounded by depictions of classical gondolas and gondoliers. The work (pictured top) is called "Venice in Oil."
"It's really beautiful, even more beautiful than the works we've seen at the Biennale," notes one passer-by in the video before two police officers tell the man holding a canvas that he needs to leave if he doesn't have a permit. The video ends with the mystery man pushing his work away as a cruise ship blows its horn in the background.
Cruise ship traffic to Venice has boomed in the last 15 years as tourist numbers have also ballooned. The artist seems to be asking whether the city sitting precariously on canals and lagoons can sustain the tourism barrage.
He works in secret and creates street art in urban spaces. He sometimes works on paper on commission. Banksy's art comes with a hefty price tag. Collector Dirk Kronsbein has 45 of his works and is showing them in Munich.
Image: Banksy/Girl with Balloon
Paparazzi Rat
Banksy's stencil piece "Paparazzi Rat" is one of his most iconic works. Starting April 15, 2016, collector Dirk Kronsbein is showing 45 works from his Banksy collection, many of them originals, in his Munich gallery. Kronsbein has said he holds Banksy in high regard due to his social activism.
Image: Banksy/Paparazzi Rat
Toxic Mary
Maria feeds Baby Jesus with a bottle that's adorned with a skull. Bomber jets are flying below them in this macabre picture. Dirk Kronsbein owns the original "Toxic Maria." Originals are hard to come by on the art market and can cost around 625,000 euros ($713,000).
Image: Banksy/Toxic Mary
Monkey Queen
Banksy is not only critical of society, he also has a sense of humor. Here, he's depicted the Queen as a chimpanzee in royal regalia. Banksy donates the proceeds from his works to charity. He was once able to present a six-figure check to a youth sports club after the sale of one painting. Dirk Kronsbein also plans to support sport programs for children with his exhibition.
Image: Bansky/Monkey Queen
Chose your Weapon
Dirk Kronsbein only sells a Banksy work if he owns more than one copy of it - as in the case of "Choose Your Weapon." It's an homage to artist Keith Haring with his dog. Kronsbein also sells Banksy paraphernalia and donates the proceeds to boxing programs for troubled youth.
Image: Banksy/Choose Your Weapon
Heavy Weapon
Banksy often deals with armed violence and armament in his work. In "Heavy Weapon," he shows an elephant with a missile on its back. While graffiti in urban spaces is often illegal, on paper they're collector items. Even copies can cost as much as 100,000 euros.
Image: Banksy/Heavy Weapon
Girl Nola
Not all of Banksy's works are political. He's also created poetic stencil paintings like "Girl Nola," whose umbrella is spilling red and yellow rain. Who is Banksy? He remains an enigma and fiercely guards the secret of his identity. All efforts to find out who he really is have been in vain.
Image: Banksy/Nola
Kate Moss
Owning a Banksy is a status symbol enjoyed by many celebrities. Actors Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, as well as model Kate Moss, all possess works by the mysterious street artist. Moss not only collects Banksy's works, but also became one: She had herself portrayed by him in the Pop Art style of Andy Warhol's iconic Marilyn Monroe painting.
Image: Banksy/Kate Moss
Girl with Balloon
Coldplay singer Chris Martin purchased the original painting "Girl with Balloon" at an auction. Not only celebrities, but also other artists like Damien Hirst collect works by Banksy. Hirst was among the first to recognize the street artist's talent.
Image: Banksy/Girl with Balloon
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Banksy again makes his mark
A stencil art work appearing in a Venice canal on May 14 that shows a young refugee holding up a pink flare has also been attributed to Banksy. Some publications say the work is a contrapoint to the shipwrecked refugee boat installation "Barca Nostra" by Swiss-Icelandic artist Christoph Büchel, however the author of the work, which did not appear on Banksy's Instagram, has not been identified.
An alleged Banksy work depicts a migrant child wearing a lifejacket holding a pink flare. It is painted on the wall of a house overlooking the Rio de Ca Foscari canal in VeniceImage: AFP/Getty Images/M. Sabadin
Meanwhile, a stenciled mural that appeared at the London base camp for Extinction Rebellion climate protests in April was widely attributed to Banksy.
The mural on a wall at Marble Arch, where the group had an encampment, shows a child holding an Extinction Rebellion sign beside the words: "From this moment despair ends and tactics begin."
Westminster City Council believes the work was genuine and has placed it under temporary protection. Meanwhile, the whereabouts of the Venice cruise ship montage is unknown.
Banksy is credited with this response to climate crisis protests Image: Getty Images/AFP/I. Infantes
