The best of Banksy?


I am not a fan of stunt art, but I do have one tiny example of the work of Banksy in my scrapbook. It too is a stunt piece, but of a different kind from the paintings that appear overnight on sundry wall or the ‘Girl with a Balloon’ that was gradually destroyed after being bought for a huge sum at auction, giving a different meaning to the auctioneer’s words, “going, going, gone”.

The work I have pasted in is a reproduction of a piece of stone with a figure pushing a supermarket trolley in imitation of the style of prehistoric cave painting. It was positioned in the British Museum and was apparently unobtrusive for several days before it was discovered.

I have had plenty of occasions when I could have cut out reproductions of Banksy’s work from newspapers but never felt inclined to do so. Why would I want to preserve images in a very commercial art style? 

But I find the trolley-pusher more pleasing. It is untainted by the obscene prices of the current art market, and I enjoy the humour of the stunt. 

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