Banksy: Mysterious Messenger

Banksy is famous the world over for his entertaining and controversial street art that pops up seemingly overnight. His distinct stenciling technique and signature dark humour have gained him international renown and yet he keeps his identity, including his real name, secret. He appears to dance to his own beat, spraying subversive messages in urban and rural areas alike and occasionally breaking the law to do so.

As mysterious as he is, here is some of what we do know.

1. Some claim his nickname of ‘Robin Hood’ is a reference to his real name being Robin Gunningham.
2. He reportedly was a soccer player on a Mexican revolutionaries’ team.
3. His works are constantly rising in value with his painting “Devolved Parliament” being sold for 9.9 million pounds in 2019.
4. Banksy painted a live elephant pink and displayed it at his ‘Barely Legal’ exhibition in Los Angeles in 2007.
5. He occasionally duplicates other artist’s works using unusual materials or adding elements of his own.
6. He once created a series of fake bank notes that featured the late Princess Diana in place of Queen Elizabeth.
7. He did nine controversially-received paintings on the wall separating Israelis and Palestinians in 2005.
8. Banksy labels himself a ‘Quality Vandal’.
9. In 2006, he painted an image of a naked man clinging to the windowsill on a wall of a public family planning clinic.
10. Banksy published five books featuring his art between 2001 and 2007.
11. Banksy has a print company called ‘Pictures on Walls‘, which is funded by Gorillaz’ co-creator, Jamie Hewlett.
12. A rare collaboration between the British contemporary titans Banksy and Damien Hirst ‘Sorry, the Lifestyle You Ordered is Currently Out of Stock (2013–2014), which combines Hirst’s famous dot pattern with Banksy’s signature deadpan sloganeering, sold for $2.3 million at Sotheby’s, beating the pair’s last collaboration, Keep it spotless (2007), which sold in 2008 for $1.87 million.
13. Banksy often edits his paintings and is best known for using stencils.
14. Neil Buchanan, the host of ITV’s “Art Attack” was rumored to be Banksy for a while but that conspiracy theory was shut down when Buchanan publicly denied it.
15. Banksy designed the cover for the band Blur’s seventh album ‘Think Tank’.
16. His 2010 documentary ‘Exit Through the Gift Shop’ was nominated for an Oscar.
17. Banksy worked on the opening credits of the 2010 Simpsons episode ‘MoneyBart’.
18. Banksy was a member of the graffiti guerrilla gang, Dry Bread Z Crew in Bristol.
19. Many of his works are featured in his self-published book ‘Wall and Piece’.
20. Some of the walls that his work appears on have been put up for auction.
21. According to reports, Banksy told his mother he was employed as a house painter.
22. He contributes to several charities that research eye diseases and sight restoration.
23. His manager used to work for Sean Penn.
24. Banksy is reported to have requested 1 million pounds to install his ‘Banksy vs. Bristol City Museum’ show at the Bristol City Museum and Art Gallery.
25. He is an animal rights activist. His ‘Turf Wars’ show which featured animals painted in various colors and patterns sparked protests even though the exhibition was approved by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

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