Recently, a few new, consume-critical works by the famous street-artist Banksy popped up in the streets. With a mix of smooth irony and dark sarcasm, he’s irritating the consumer masses and those who are persuading them.. “Sorry, the lifestyle that you ordered is currently out of stock”.
Meanwhile, Banksy has become one of the most popular contemporary artists, his works are sold for hundred thousands of euros and his stencil icons used or copied in advertising, fashion and trend forecast blogs.
We’re living in a time where critical consumerism is an integral part of an urban intellectual creative socially-aware hipster lifestyle in which we like a consumer-bashing Banksy artwork on facebook and next day go shopping some cool new must-have-trousers. Where we support #occupywallstreet with our tweets and meanwhile keep our money flowing at the same old banks (yes, you can change that). Also, a time where we’re dreaming of a post-consumer-era where smart consumers reclaim power over their products again.
Maybe Banksy actually means the global mind of crisis is pushing some of the most posh swimming-pool-on-my-rooftop lifestyles to be out, out, out…
Or maybe he just provoked: “even my well-receipted radical punk-ass got sold on auctions, but as long as walls eat my graffiti people buy my art and I keep getting more famous.” It’s nothing more then the best pop-art artists like Andy Warhol have created us: a post-consumer consumer-culture built on it’s own ironic icons. That’s in line with the Kate Moss portrait by Banksy in Warhol-style. And it might just be in your digital shopping wagon tomorrow!
Happy Christmas shopping!
Via: Artschoolvets via Highsnobiety via Wooster.
More about Banksy on wikipedia, or just go shopping.
This article was earlier published on Beyond Berlin.
Frans Prins 