Chapter 1063: The G.o.dfather of the Street
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
There was a graffiti on the snow-white inner wall of the warehouse. In the middle was a
telephone booth. There were three secret agents wearing brown trench coats, top hats,
and gla.s.ses outside the booth. Each of them had a special listening device set in hand,
eavesdropping the empty booth in a serious manner.
The graffiti had a background of an empty street. Combined with a telephone booth and
monitoring secret agents, the atmosphere was pretty good. The creator’s ability was
extraordinary.
In the corner of the graffiti, there was a signature of Banksy and a logo, a figure with a
backward cap and a black bandana.
Looking at this piece of graffiti, Hans was stunned. He asked, “So this is what caught
your eyes? What is this?”
Li Du said, “Don’t spend all your free time chasing after girls. Instead, learn more and
read more. Take a look at yourself, you don’t seem to know anything.”
Hans said angrily, “I am just not so good at this area. I will be fine after doing some
research online.”
Li Du said, “There is no need to do that. Banksy was born in 1974, in Bristol, England.
He became known as one of the most talented street artists in the world.”
After listening to this introduction, Hans looked at the signature of Banksy again and
said, “Do you mean to say that this graffiti is the work of master artist Banksy?”
Li Du nodded, “Yes, that’s right.”
Not everyone might know Banksy, but he was the G.o.dfather of street art.
The first time Li Du heard this name was from the art hunters who had accompanied
Tina two days ago. While they talked about several famous street art creators, Banksy
was at the top of the list.
Coincidentally, on the same day, Li Du went to inspect the warehouse and happened to
discover the graffiti painted by Banksy on the inner wall.
If it were not for the information he got from those art hunters, he would have definitely
overlooked this, and certainly would not have discovered this piece of graffiti, nor could
he have correctly estimated the value of this warehouse.
At that time, he even searched for information about Banksy just in case.
The art tyc.o.o.n grew up among photocopier mechanics. Consequently, Banksy had the
chance to get in touch with artwork from an early age.
When he was 14, Banksy was expelled from school, but very soon he became the
backbone of the British graffiti trend.
For many years, he was the most famous graffiti artist in London. However, n.o.body
knew his true ident.i.ty or what he looked like. He only revealed himself and his
experiences through graffiti.
The reason for this was that he often exchanged world-famous artworks across England
art galleries with his modified imitations.
Of course, he didn’t steal those world masterpieces, nor did he have the ability to steal
them. He would sneak into an art gallery and try to think of a way to put up his own
spoofs.
Although this was not a crime, it would certainly not meet approval. That was why
Banksy didn’t dare to reveal his true ident.i.ty.
His mysterious ident.i.ty had attracted the curiosity of the media and the public.
Gradually, Banksy became the most famous street artist in England.
His artwork did not merely rely on hype, but on his talent. His black and white cut-off
graffiti was considered tactful, humorous and subversive. It was also known as a world
of art, and he gained himself the name of a humorous street poet in England.
Since his work was renowned, naturally it became valuable.
As early as October 2007, his artwork was auctioned at London Bonham’s auction
house. Eleven of his pieces shocked the auction house with a total price of £546,000.
Later, he had a painting called Avon and Somerset Constabulary that went up for
auction and was sold at £196,000. It was the highest price street graffiti ever earned.
Subsequently, he had sold other artworks. Attacking Graffiti Boy went at £178,000 and
Unnamed Work of Rat and Sword at £264,800.
His most expensive artwork, Mobile Lovers, was sold last year. This piece of art
appeared on the wall of a youth club in Bristol, portraying a couple hugging while
checking out their phones.
This painting attracted many street art lovers. The club owner David Stinchcombe
realized that it was profitable, following which he moved the painting inside and asked
people to make a donation before entering the club to appreciate it. As a consequence,
he received a death threat.
Finally, the boss auctioned it and sold it for £420,000!
After Li Du’s explanation, alongside with the information Hans found online, the group of
people managed to gain a fundamental understanding of Banksy.
Hans and Potter both released a gasp of surprise. Potter was amazed. “Li, you know so
much, it’s really impressive.”
Hans, on the other hand, said, “s.h.i.+t, street graffiti has become surprisingly valuable. I
should have made a career in it. Do you guys know I was once a street graffiti expert?”
Li Du smiled scornfully. “You? If you were to continue your career of choice, you would
now be brus.h.i.+ng toilets in jail!”
Whether in the United Kingdom or in America, graffiti activities were illegal, and the
artists would usually either be fined or made to do community work.
This was also the reason for Banksy’s difficult life. In his early career, he was called an
“ideological terrorist” by the British press. He was often attacked and tracked by police.
His life was full of uncertainty, which led him to be very poor.
Only recently, after gaining a good reputation in “Graffiti World” and becoming known as
a Great Master of Art, Banksy started to get profits from some of his work publications
and gradually improved his situation.
In these art collections, he would share his personal life from time to time. One of them
introduced his previous experience in America and his life while he studied street art in
Wynwood.
Needless to say, this Great Master of Art was also down and out at that time. He had no
choice but to live in a windowless warehouse that had no running water or electricity.
Hans said confidently, “I have no problem with that. I can run very fast and the police
wouldn’t be able to catch me.”
G.o.dzilla interrupted, “The question now is, how are we going to take this painting? It’s
painted on the wall, right?”
Graffiti was usually painted directly on the wall. Fortunately, this time Banksy painted it
on the inner wall of the warehouse. And Mr. Bicycle Warehouse happened to have
wallpaper.
This wasn’t because the warehouse company was particular, but because the boss
realized that his warehouses could be leased to poor people to reside in. He tried to find
inexpensive ways to create better living standards to attract people, and putting up
wallpaper was one of them.
Putting up wallpaper in a warehouse, first, would make it look neat and clean; second, it
would be easier to tidy up. Once a tenant left, one could just put up another layer of
wallpaper and there would be no need to repaint the wall.
Li Du had previously studied this matter and knew that wallpaper could be removed
without damaging the graffiti, because there were a few layers of wallpaper underneath.
Even sc.r.a.ping it off with a knife would cause no harm.
This task was given to Brother Wolf, who was a knife expert, very attentive and
meticulous. Hence, he was perfect for the job.