As we come to the close of Banksy’s residency in New York City, his latest work ‘The banality of the banality of evil ‘ Oil on oil on canvas, 2013, a thrift store painting vandalised then re-donated to the thrift store, depicts a landscape of a lake and snow capped mountains with a contemplative portrait of Adolf Hitler glancing out over the countryside. As to what this represents, we can only speculate. Could it be that Banksy is making a statement on Hitler’s hatred of what he deemed to be degenerate art? A category that would most certainly have applied to most street artists.
The painting was donated to the housing charity who have now put it up on the Bidding For Good website. (Watch Auction or Bid Here) It stands at $310,400. It is thought that the price will relise a much higher ticket price before the bidding comes to an end today at 8:00 pm EST.
Legendary UK graffiti artist Banksy’s work typically includes satirical social and political commentary, and ranges from murals to sculpture and installation, often playing with the contextual aspects of the work. The artist’s first solo show was held in 2002 at Los Angeles’ 33 1/3 Gallery, and in 2003 he was commissioned to design to cover of Blur’s ThinkTank. Today, Banksy’s work appears internationally; most notably, he painted nine sardonic images on the Palestinian side of the West Bank barrier. In Summer 2009, Banksy took over the Bristol Museum and Art Gallery with an exhibition attracting over 300,000 visitors and hour-long queues all the way down the road. Most recently the artist has experimented with film, achieving an Oscar nomination for his documentary Exit Through The Gift Shop. Consistently controversial, Banksy is described by some as genius and others as a vandal. Regardless of whether he is inspiring admiration or provoking outrage, his name is one that is well-known around the world. He is currently completing a 30 day residency in NYC.
