Slashdot Mirror
Cleaners Paint Over Priceless Art
The Melbourne city council learned the hard way that one man's art is another man's crap on a wall that needs to be painted over. The council hired a cleanup crew to get rid of graffiti on Hosier Lane, a street renowned for its street art. While there, the crew got rid of the graffiti, as well as a piece by Banksy, who is regarded as one of the world's greatest street artists. From the article: "The reclusive Banksy ... painted several stencils in Melbourne during a 2003 visit. His satirical and distinctive art is often directed at anti-war, cultural, and anti-capitalist themes. Banksy in 2005 painted nine images on Israel's West Bank barrier, including a ladder going over the wall and an image of children breaking through to a tropical island. In 2008, a London wall bearing one of his stencils was said to have sold on eBay for almost $500,000."
This has happened all over London as well. In the 4 years I was there.. i used to know of about 25 pieces.. and when i left they were down to about 7. The small "Rats" have a particular knack of getting painted over.. they are all gone, bar one that I know of, in London.
Isn't Banksy's position that he likes the perishable nature of his art?