Banksy - Palestine Chairs
In theory and by society's norm, Banksy is considered a vandal, a misfit graffiti artist painting the town red, so to speak. In reality Banksy is the working man's hero.
He is the voice of the repressed, the ill-treated and persecuted. With each wall he paints, he tells a story, a story of injustice, a story of "the man" wronging the public. His works of art generally are mocking oppressive governments and the greedy man.
His most powerful works of art would be the ones on the Israeli West Bank barrier painted in 2005. The paintings highlighted the injustice against the Palestinian people and the ongoing conflict in that area. His feelings about the controversial wall are made clear with the following statement: "The Israeli government is building a wall surrounding the occupied Palestinian territories. It stands three times the height of the Berlin Wall and will eventually run for over 700km - the distance from London to Zurich. The wall is illegal under international law and essentially turns Palestine into the world's largest open prison."
Though governments may view his art as illegal graffiti, the public praises his work, believing he is painting what they are feeling. Most of us do not have the talent and courage Banksy has, but we all share his thoughts. We all root for him and await more paintings depicting the injustice people suffer on the hands of their rulers. Art has always served as a means for people to revolt against the system. Pink Floyd did it by writing songs such as "Another Brick in the Wall"; Cezanne did it by painting farmers hard at work, and now Banksy does it with his graffiti.
"Holly Golightly"
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