Mr Brainwash sells out, again, by justsomeyank on Dec 18, 2009 16:10:20 GMT 1,

Dec 18, 2009 3:27:04 GMT 1 cadeallaw said:

Dec 18, 2009 0:24:43 GMT 1 @monkeyballs said:

I think he is taking everyone for mugs. That many prints realistically selling out in that short space of time, again and again and no real % falling into scalpers hands? No real ebay market to speak of despite this apparent demand that means editions sell within hours of release from source?

Decent points...
However, I'd like to make a few additional points:

1. He has a HUGE following in LA, and LA is notorious for believing that they are the only city that matters therefore if MBW is the most popular street artist in LA, they believe that MBW is the most popular street artist in the world (see the Carson Daily interview from early 2009 where he calls Mr Brainwash "the most recognized street artists in the world").


3. Celebrities love the guy and Celebrities create buzz, therefore MBW is buzz.

You're forgetting that people in LA (and especially celebrities) are also notorious for being incredibly fickle and will jump off the Mr. Brainwash bandwagon just as quickly as they jumped on.

I think some of his work is clever, but it doesn't really go much beyond that. Good for him if he can make a buck by putting a Marilyn Monroe wig on every celebrity he can find, but it doesn't make him a quality artist, it just makes him a successful artist, and those two distinctions can be quite different.

Although I'm not a fan of MBW, it seems that some people on here dislike him for reasons other than his art. Unlike other famous street artists (Banksy, Shep), there's a sense that he hasn't "paid his dues" because he didn't build a following on the street level, he built it through galleries and the established art world, something that street art is inherantly opposed to (or at least used to be). I don't necessarily agree or disagree with this assessment, just find it interesting how outside variables and opinions influence peoples' views of an artist, rather than the art itself.

Dec 18, 2009 3:27:04 GMT 1 cadeallaw said:

Dec 18, 2009 0:24:43 GMT 1 @monkeyballs said:

I think he is taking everyone for mugs. That many prints realistically selling out in that short space of time, again and again and no real % falling into scalpers hands? No real ebay market to speak of despite this apparent demand that means editions sell within hours of release from source?

Decent points...
However, I'd like to make a few additional points:

1. He has a HUGE following in LA, and LA is notorious for believing that they are the only city that matters therefore if MBW is the most popular street artist in LA, they believe that MBW is the most popular street artist in the world (see the Carson Daily interview from early 2009 where he calls Mr Brainwash "the most recognized street artists in the world").


3. Celebrities love the guy and Celebrities create buzz, therefore MBW is buzz.

You're forgetting that people in LA (and especially celebrities) are also notorious for being incredibly fickle and will jump off the Mr. Brainwash bandwagon just as quickly as they jumped on.

I think some of his work is clever, but it doesn't really go much beyond that. Good for him if he can make a buck by putting a Marilyn Monroe wig on every celebrity he can find, but it doesn't make him a quality artist, it just makes him a successful artist, and those two distinctions can be quite different.

Although I'm not a fan of MBW, it seems that some people on here dislike him for reasons other than his art. Unlike other famous street artists (Banksy, Shep), there's a sense that he hasn't "paid his dues" because he didn't build a following on the street level, he built it through galleries and the established art world, something that street art is inherantly opposed to (or at least used to be). I don't necessarily agree or disagree with this assessment, just find it interesting how outside variables and opinions influence peoples' views of an artist, rather than the art itself.