Urban Art Association

Passersby stop and stare at a life-size drawing on a public corner of male police officers passionately kissing. Disneyland visitors stumble across an Abu Ghraib–jumpsuited dummy near a ride. Tourists gawk at graffiti depicting kids playing in front of a wall, with a tropical paradise peeking through a gaping hole. (Did we mention that the “wall” is the West Bank barrier in Israel?) These guerrilla murals and gonzo pranks are just a few you’ll see in Exit Through the Gift Shop, an extraordinary street-art doc featuring—and made by—the mystery man responsible for those subversive pièces de résistance: Banksy. TONY conducted an interview with this reclusive graffiti legend and reluctant filmmaker via e-mail.

You inherited all this random footage from Thierry Guetta (a.k.a. Mr. Brainwash), who’d started shooting you and street artist Shepard Fairey years ago and couldn’t finish the movie. What made you think, I could make a documentary out of this?
The beauty of having no idea how to make a movie is that I thought I could do it. Basically, this new art form was emerging that was a true global movement. It needed to be recorded and preserved accurately for posterity. And that’s the film I haven’t made.

Do you see Exit justifying the idea that street art is equal to what’s hanging in galleries?
Should graffiti be judged on the same level as modern art? Of course not: It’s way more important than that. Hopefully street art will stop being trendy. They say the quickest way to kill a man’s ideas is to make him fashionable.


What’s more subversive: making socially conscious art that smacks people out of their stupor, or getting paid and becoming famous from it?
I wouldn’t want to be remembered as the guy who contaminated a perfectly legitimate form of protest art with money and celebrities. I do sometimes question whether I’m part of the solution or part of the problem. For example: I’m getting pressure from my distributor to take out billboards for the film. Now, I hate billboards; they’re just corporate vandalism. And yet last week I was thinking, Well…maybe a couple won’t hurt.… There’s obviously nothing wrong with selling your art—only an idiot with a trust fund would tell you otherwise. But it’s confusing to know how far you should take it. I don’t read books or listen to music made by people in their spare time, so I guess the vandalism I look at shouldn’t be any different. I want it performed by professionals at the highest level.

You must get a lot of flak for that opinion.
People ask, How do I sleep at night? Very well, actually. Because I’m an alcoholic.

Is it now harder to cultivate anonymity instead of fame?
In today’s culture: yes. I don’t know why people are so keen to put the details of their private life in public; they forget that invisibility is a superpower.

You’ve called this a “street-art disaster film”—and said that the result feels personally disastrous. So did the positive reception at Sundance and Berlin shock you?
I didn’t really think about the critics and audiences, I just wanted to make a film that my friends would enjoy. Unfortunately, all my friends are idiots.

Did the whole “Is this a hoax?” question about Mr. Brainwash and his artwork surprise you?
Never once during the film’s making did it occur to me that people would think either the film or Thierry was some kind of put-on. In a way, that diminishes the power of the movie. But on the other hand, it makes me look kind of smart—so I’ll take it.

What made you choose that crumbling, graffiti-strewn wall for the film’s last shot?
Maybe it represents the art of finding beauty in everyday life. Maybe it’s a poignant symbol of a generation’s dreams crumbling to dust. Maybe it’s a wall falling over. Essentially, the moral is—sometimes there is no moral, deal with it.

What’s next?
I’m thinking of quitting the art world. I want to do something a bit more creative.


Read more: newyork.timeout.com/articles/film/84736/street-illegal#ixzz0l4BqJlcw

He's a funny guy that Banksy....

Some quality answers there. Love his dry wit, very similar to the Pow email releases these days.

Get this....maybe its because he's an artist and not a film maker ?

ARTISTS MAKE FILMS, NO?
AGAIN, POINT WAS THAT FILM WAS COBBLED TOGETHER FOOTAGE BOUGHT OFF FRENCH CHANCER, NOT ACTUALLY FILMED BY BANKSY HIMSELF.
THINK PEGGY'S POINT WENT OVER YOUR HEAD

Writing in caps and referring to ones self in the third person...? Is peggy trying to be the new BONGO?

If you are I do hope you have a "pied a terre" to reference from time to time

I hear he's doing an exclusive cover and posters for Time Out New York.

Here you go

Time Out made me work to get these today - 6 newstands - they put out two different covers and only a few are the Banksy covers......

Firts 20 forum members reply here, gets one.



Fragile and Sacked - no need to reply - you're reserved......

gotta go back to work - so you will not get a reply from me until later today......

nice one boaty you little stunner!!

I would disagree wholeheartedly. The footage that was shot by Thierry was fantastic. The problem (or at least the problem as told to us by Banksy) was the editing of the footage into "Life Remote Control." But I would love to see a DVD (or whole set of them) of the original footage captured by him as he follows all of the artists around as they put their art up.

I also thought the footage shot by Banksy (or his people) was what made the film dull. Maybe it was their subjects (Thierry and Shep) but I grew quite bored with how the later interviews were captured. The editing of "Exit" as a whole also left a bit to be desired. Frankly, I really liked the opening sequence, but by the end, the movie was a bit too cliched for my tastes.

Again, perhaps my expectations were too high. But clearly Banksy should not give up his day job to become a filmmaker...

Just my $.02

RPM

Oh, and can I get a copy of Time Out Boaty? I'd gladly trade you for a copy of the L.A. Weekly with Banksy cover.

RPM

please if ones going spare

I'd love one if there are extras.