Banksy

For someone who shuns the limelight so completely that he conceals his name, never shows his face and gives interviews only by email, Banksy is remarkably famous. From his beginnings as a Bristol graffiti artist, his artwork is now sold at auction for six-figure sums and hangs on celebrities’ walls. The appearance of a new Banksy is national news, his documentary Exit Through the Gift Shop was Oscar-nominated and people queue for hours to see his latest exhibition. Now more National Treasure than edgy outsider, who is Banksy and how did he become what he is today? In the first attempt to tell the full story of Banksy’ s life and career, Will Ellsworth-Jones pieces together a picture of his world and unpicks its contradictions. Whether art or vandalism, anti-establishment or sell-out, Banksy and his work have become a cultural phenomenon and the question ‘ Who is Banksy?’ is as much about his career as it is ‘ the man behind the wall’ . 'Britain's unlikeliest national treasure' Independent ‘ A fascinating portrait that elicits admiration for a man who, despite his increasingly unconvincing efforts to retain some shred of his vandal status, has had an undeniable impact on art’ The Times

For someone who shuns the limelight so completely that he conceals his name, never shows his face and gives interviews only by email, Banksy is remarkably famous. From his beginnings as a Bristol graffiti artist, his artwork is now sold at auction for six-figure sums and hangs on celebrities’ walls. The appearance of a new Banksy is national news, his documentary Exit Through the Gift Shop was Oscar-nominated and people queue for hours to see his latest exhibition. Now more National Treasure than edgy outsider, who is Banksy and how did he become what he is today? In the first attempt to tell the full story of Banksy’ s life and career, Will Ellsworth-Jones pieces together a picture of his world and unpicks its contradictions. Whether art or vandalism, anti-establishment or sell-out, Banksy and his work have become a cultural phenomenon and the question ‘ Who is Banksy?’ is as much about his career as it is ‘ the man behind the wall’ . 'Britain's unlikeliest national treasure' Independent ‘ A fascinating portrait that elicits admiration for a man who, despite his increasingly unconvincing efforts to retain some shred of his vandal status, has had an undeniable impact on art’ The Times

Catalogue to a major traveling exhibition focused on Banksy, the world’s most popular graffiti artist whose real identity remains unknown despite his domination of the global street art scene for over twenty-five years. This accessible volume devoted to the enigmatic artist known as Banksy showcases pivotal works from private collections grouped to reveal Banksy’s key reference points and creative drives. The show features more than 100 original iconic works—always topical and certainly never dull—including Girl with Balloon, Gangsta Rat, Monkey Queen, along with lesser-known examples in other media such as “Banksy of England” banknotes, satiric CD covers, posters, and rare T-shirt designs. Laced with caustic and critical messages, Banksy’s works examine capitalism, consumerism, war, social control, freedom, and other features of our time with groundbreaking freshness and immediacy. Insightful essays explore such topics as Banksy’s philosophy, relationship to the art market, and choice to remain incognito. Banksy’s paintings, sculptures, prints, infographic cladograms, and tube maps are accompanied by detailed contextual analysis and a time line with highlights of Banksy’s career.

Catalogue to a major traveling exhibition focused on Banksy, the world’s most popular graffiti artist whose real identity remains unknown despite his domination of the global street art scene for over twenty-five years. This accessible volume devoted to the enigmatic artist known as Banksy showcases pivotal works from private collections grouped to reveal Banksy’s key reference points and creative drives. The show features more than 100 original iconic works—always topical and certainly never dull—including Girl with Balloon, Gangsta Rat, Monkey Queen, along with lesser-known examples in other media such as “Banksy of England” banknotes, satiric CD covers, posters, and rare T-shirt designs. Laced with caustic and critical messages, Banksy’s works examine capitalism, consumerism, war, social control, freedom, and other features of our time with groundbreaking freshness and immediacy. Insightful essays explore such topics as Banksy’s philosophy, relationship to the art market, and choice to remain incognito. Banksy’s paintings, sculptures, prints, infographic cladograms, and tube maps are accompanied by detailed contextual analysis and a time line with highlights of Banksy’s career.

The largest presentation of works by Banksy, the world’s most enigmatic yet highly sought-after artist, including iconic works, installation objects, ephemera, and memorabilia all in one volume. Banksy is the world’s most discussed artist of recent decades, and this seminal collection features hundreds of works including Girl with Balloon , Pulp Fiction , Love Is in the Air , Barcode , and Monkey Queen . It also includes scores of paintings, serigraphs, stencils, and installation objects as well as a selection of memorabilia—many of which have never been published previously. Created with the cooperation of Pest Control, the group that manages all things Banksy, this is as official and authorized as any Banksy publication could be. Banksy is the world’s greatest practitioner of street art. His work has always been political, involving pointed critiques of inequality, injustice, consumerism, and the establishment, yet no one knows his identity. He is an exemplary case of fame and notoriety built upon absence and anonymity. His relationship with the art market is also complex: marked by mocking hostility while being one of the most marketable and most collected contemporary artists.

Accompanied by stunning full-page, full-color reproductions and photographs of works in situ—including many that have been lost to time photographer and street art expert Alessandra Mattanza’s impassioned and informed text follows Banksy’s career trajectory from creator of message-laden stencils on London’s city walls to a sought-after champion of human and environmental rights. She investigates many of the key images that populate Banksy’s work—animals, children, historic figures, balloons, cartoon characters, police officers, and others. She shows how Banksy’s oeuvre has expanded beyond graffiti and stenciling and how his art has helped support his activism in a variety of causes—from calls for peace in the Middle East to the preservation of the natural environment. Readers will come away with a new understanding of how Banksy helped transform an illegal act of criminal damage into a high art form, and how, by ridiculing institutionalized art, he has achieved enormous fame within those very institutions.

Accompanied by stunning full-page, full-color reproductions and photographs of works in situ—including many that have been lost to time photographer and street art expert Alessandra Mattanza’s impassioned and informed text follows Banksy’s career trajectory from creator of message-laden stencils on London’s city walls to a sought-after champion of human and environmental rights. She investigates many of the key images that populate Banksy’s work—animals, children, historic figures, balloons, cartoon characters, police officers, and others. She shows how Banksy’s oeuvre has expanded beyond graffiti and stenciling and how his art has helped support his activism in a variety of causes—from calls for peace in the Middle East to the preservation of the natural environment. Readers will come away with a new understanding of how Banksy helped transform an illegal act of criminal damage into a high art form, and how, by ridiculing institutionalized art, he has achieved enormous fame within those very institutions.

The largest presentation of works by Banksy, the world’s most enigmatic yet highly sought-after artist, including iconic works, installation objects, ephemera, and memorabilia all in one volume. Banksy is the world’s most discussed artist of recent decades, and this seminal collection features hundreds of works including Girl with Balloon , Pulp Fiction , Love Is in the Air , Barcode , and Monkey Queen . It also includes scores of paintings, serigraphs, stencils, and installation objects as well as a selection of memorabilia—many of which have never been published previously. Created with the cooperation of Pest Control, the group that manages all things Banksy, this is as official and authorized as any Banksy publication could be. Banksy is the world’s greatest practitioner of street art. His work has always been political, involving pointed critiques of inequality, injustice, consumerism, and the establishment, yet no one knows his identity. He is an exemplary case of fame and notoriety built upon absence and anonymity. His relationship with the art market is also complex: marked by mocking hostility while being one of the most marketable and most collected contemporary artists.

The artist known as Banksy has been creating works for over three decades and is one of the best-known artists of our age. Banksy has always believed the best place for his work is on a wall, where it's free and accessible to everyone. That said, since 2002, he's also created around fifty-one print editions, producing an estimated 30,000 artworks. His Pictures on Walls (POW) project played a huge role in shaping his career and the street-art scene at large. This unauthorized guide to Banksy's print editions meticulously documents 174 unique prints, presenting an unparalleled visual catalog of these hugely collectible works. In addition to making his art accessible to a larger audience, these prints often expand on themes seen in his wider body of work, making them essential in understanding his artistic development over the last two decades. Banksy initially offered his prints, both signed and unsigned, for modest prices. Organized by release year, with insightful commentary, essential details about each edition, and faithful and high--quality reproductions, Banksy: The Prints is the ultimate resource for exploring Banksy's printed works.