Diamond Girl by BanksyFamed street artist Banksy tagged Detroit and 3 of the 4 known pieces are now gone. Well, at least they’re not in their native habitat where Banksy intended them to be. Intense debates are going on online and in the real world on whether this was an act of preservation or unadulterated theft.
“I remember when all this was trees” was excavated/stolen from the Packard Plant by the 555 Nonprofit Gallery and Studios. This moron, claiming to be a fan, started Diamond Girl’s removal, I'd like to know the rest of the story. The Boy on the Beach at Canfield and Cass was quickly painted over. Only Tightrope Rat remains.
The Craig Fahle Show on WDET talked about the Banksy piece taken by the 555 Gallery today. They invited to the 555 Gallery to participate or comment and this is the statement they received:
"Thank you for inviting us to participate in the discussion. We are excited that there is such a lively debate regarding the excavation of the Banksy piece from the Packard plant. At this time we are in talks with the owner of the Packard Plant regarding the status of the piece and are not free to participate in public discussion at this time. We look forward to continuing the conversation and dialogue around the piece into the future. We welcome all opinions and hope that all those interested will visit us at our current location…"
Banksy’s work gets stolen, removed, or painted over all the time. A quick search led me to pieces in L.A. and New Orleans that were removed. Some idiots are trying to make a profit and others are attempting to making a statement.
This is street art, people! Let it live (and die) on the street.
Through all this fervor I was reminded of a quote I found while researching Graffiti Alley. Katherine Tombeau Cost painted the original mural under Graffiti Alley that was whitewashed. In an article in the Ann Arbor Chronicle she said,
"The thing about public art it is an exercise in letting go. You put it out there and you know it is not forever. I have to remind myself this isn’t my family room. That is the element of public art. It will be great and it will be gone."
The folks over at Perfect Laughter suggest we celebrate the artists we have here in Detroit instead of just getting all hyped up about Banksy. Banksy showing up in Detroit, or any city, is big news but let’s not forget about the abundance of creativity and talent of our resident artists.
OK, I’m done. I know I’ve been talking about graffiti and Banksy quite a bit in the last few weeks. I now return you to your regularly scheduled programming. Unless, of course, another Banksy appears in Detroit.