I should have introduced myself again before. My bad. My name is Cecil Castellucci and I wrote the OGN The PLAIN Janes out on DC Comics new Minx line. It’s about a group of girls named Jane who start an art girl gang in their suburban town and shake things up.
So this week’s street and crush is going to be in the same post because I am in love with Banksy.
Banksy’s work is a big inspiration for me and one of the reasons why I thought that Jane doing street art would be so cool.
Banksy, for those that don’t know, is a street artist who goes around the world and pretty much does kick ass things and poses some amazing questions. His art really makes a person take pause. It’s cheeky, political, charged, fun, candid and I think it’s important. Some of his art is performance-y, which is just so cool that I can’t even breathe it makes me so happy! Last year in Los Angeles, where I live, he even had a gallery show and I went and the location was only disclosed at the last minute and it was so great that I wanted to buy a painting. But. I. Can’t. Afford. A. Banksy.
Happily, Banksy hit the streets here in L.A. And the beautiful thing about street art is that it belongs to everybody.
There was one down my block, but when I went this morning to go take a picture of it, the side of the building where it had been was painted over. I was all kinds of sad.
I learned a lesson right there. One I already knew, but had forgotten. I will pass it on to you so we can remind each other later. If you see a cool piece of street art take a picture of it right away. Don’t think it’ll be there tomorrow.
I hopped in my car, vaguely remembering that there were Banksy’s somewhere kicking around on Melrose and Beverly Blvd. I wanted to find this one with Robin on it, but I guess I didn’t drive far enough.
They are so many fantastic and funny and brilliant pieces!
I bet Banksy would be so cool to go have coffee with. But he’s incognito! So I may never know if I have coffee with him. So I’d better just take this moment to say:
Banksy. I love your art. I love your brain. Keep making the world a beautiful place.
June 2nd, 2007 at 5:24 am
I think Banksy is wonderful. There’s a piece of his of 2 policemen kissing just down the road from me. You should check out his book “wall and piece” if you haven’t already
June 2nd, 2007 at 7:33 pm
oh yeah! I have that book! It’s so awesome! I got it for myself for christmas!
I love that policemen kissing one!
June 6th, 2007 at 3:59 pm
When I was Living in Bristol, one of my favourite things was actually being surrounded with early Banksy originals.
(And the stencil art in the town generally. Bristol was great in that way)
KG