Banksy

Reading some of the threads on the site I noticed some people praising a graffiti artist named Banksy. I am wondering if those they are aware of this Banksy piece.

<!-- m -->http://rantchick.com/wp-content/uploads ... ackson.jpg<!-- m -->

Banksy - Michael Jackson - <!-- m -->http://www.nowpublic.com/banksy_michael_jackson__<!-- m -->
December 7, 2006
Controversial British graffiti artist BANKSY has made fun of MICHAEL JACKSON in a new drawing which went on exhibition in London yesterday (01DEC06). Banksy's drawing is inspired by classic children's tale HANSEL AND GRETEL and features Jackson, who was acquitted of child molestation last year (05), crouching in the doorway of a cottage holding out a sweet (candy) to a young girl and boy.The shock artist - famed for doctoring 500 copies of PARIS HILTON's debut album PARIS - says, "I feel the spirit of Christmas was being lost. It was becoming increasingly uncommercialised more and more."His Jackson drawing is displayed in Santa's Grotto, which is exhibiting graffiti, art and sculpture.

Hansel and Gretel - <!-- m -->http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hansel_and_Gretel<!-- m -->
Hansel and Gretel are the young children of a poor woodcutter. When a great famine settles over the land, the woodcutter's second, abusive wife concocts a plan to take the children into the woods and leave them there to fend for themselves, so that she and her husband, with two fewer mouths to feed, might not starve. The woodcutter opposes the plan but finally, and reluctantly, submits to his wife's scheme. The following morning, the family treks into the woods. Hansel takes a slice of bread and leaves a trail of bread crumbs for them to follow home. However, after they are once again abandoned, they find that the birds have eaten the crumbs and they are lost in the woods. After days of wandering, they follow a beautiful white bird to a clearing in the woods, and discover a cottage built of gingerbread and cakes with window panes of clear sugar. Hungry and tired, the children begin to eat the rooftop of the candy house, when the door opens and a "very old woman" emerges and lures the children inside, with the promise of soft beds and delicious food. Their hostess is a "wicked witch" who waylays children to cook and eat them. The next morning, the witch locks Hansel in an iron cage in the garden and forces Gretel into becoming a slave.

In Banksy's drawing Michael Jackson is being depicted as the "wicked" person luring young victims into the cottage with candy. Not a very flattering portrayal of Michael Jackson, an innocent man, falsely accused of molestation and found not guilty in a court of law.

Comments

  • FUCK BANKSY VERY MUCH if it so! But it is not confirmed what exactly he ment with that picture. Some asshole interpreted his donkey way, that's all.
  • fordtocarrfordtocarr Posts: 1,547
    YEP he made this pic...<!-- m -->http://www.nowpublic.com/banksy_michael_jackson<!-- m -->
    oops...attachment quota is reached so I can't post the pic...
  • MJonmindMJonmind Posts: 7,290
    Sad.
    Michael said to Geraldo Rivera that true artists don't make fun of each other.
  • Oh no....
    I like this sentence about the artists very much! So true. I wonder if Eminem heard it... <!-- s:roll: -->:roll:<!-- s:roll: -->
  • SouzaSouza Posts: 9,400
    YEP he made this pic...<!-- m -->http://www.nowpublic.com/banksy_michael_jackson<!-- m -->
    oops...attachment quota is reached so I can't post the pic...

    I reset the attachment quota, it should work again.

    "For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places."

  • fordtocarrfordtocarr Posts: 1,547
    YEP he made this pic...<!-- m -->http://www.nowpublic.com/banksy_michael_jackson<!-- m -->
    oops...attachment quota is reached so I can't post the pic...

    I reset the attachment quota, it should work again.


    Thank you Souza
  • DoDo Posts: 850
    Tasteless....
  • If it wasn't meant in a bad way then why does it have Hansel and Gretel in it. So to me I think that Banksy is trying to make a contrast between the wicked witch and MJ. Even if he didn't intend that he would of known it would be interpreted that way by others. He is definitely not ignorant so he must be arrogant.
  • If it wasn't meant in a bad way then why does it have Hansel and Gretel in it. So to me I think that Banksy is trying to make a contrast between the wicked witch and MJ. Even if he didn't intend that he would of known it would be interpreted that way by others. He is definitely not ignorant so he must be arrogant.

    Not necessarily, It can go either way.. Everybody knows MJ loves children, so he painted a protray of Michael being generous, giving candies to children. Like he did in Neverland, he had a candy bar, full of m&m smarties ice cream etc.. Maybe this will show how wonderful Michael's heart is.. This is my interpretation. I could be wrong. But there is always 2 sides of a story.
  • MashMikeMashMike Posts: 1,312
    it sucks
  • msteetee34msteetee34 Posts: 1,234
    I think the painting portrays MJ in a mean way. It's like the artist is comparing him to the witch that lures children in with goodies. The facial expression of MJ and demeanor in the painting makes him appear creepy. That's messed up for real. I think if he were trying to be positive he wouldn't make MJ look all creepy like that.
  • rag dollrag doll Posts: 357
    I agree with all4loveandbelieve - there are always at least two ways to look at things. As long as the artist doesn`t comment on his work of art, it stands for itself and the interpretation is up to the viewer.

    So even if the context may appear obvious here at the first glance, one shouldn`t dismiss this piece out of hand.
    I haven`t seen it before but I must say, I find it pretty interesting. I like, how Banksy illustrates loneliness in his pictures - a lot of characters in his motives seem to be lonely in one way or another - and I like the questioning overtones in his works. Banksy makes intelligent art.

    A while ago, we´ve talked about the "Pied piper of Hamelin" here on the board - and as far as I remember, the "Pied Piper" in the story wasn`t a nice guy either... <!-- s;) -->;)<!-- s;) -->
  • If Banksy was SO bad, the future would quite probably not be SO Grimm for Michael's children.
    http://www.tmz.com/2011/02/24/paris-jacksons-grimm-audition-brothers-school-play-theatre-michael-good-morning-america-gma-interview/
    Michael Jackson's Kids -- The Future Is 'Grimm'

    3/1/2011 12:45 AM PST by TMZ Staff

    It's in their blood ... and now Prince & Paris Jackson want to show the world they belong in show business ... by trying out for their school play -- a mash-up of classic "Brothers Grimm" fairy tales.

    0228-jackson-kids-ex.jpg

    Paris expressed interest in auditioning for the show recently on "Good Morning America" -- and now TMZ has learned, Prince wants in on the action too ... because they BOTH officially tried out last week.

    The show's called "The Brothers Grimm Spectaculathon" ... and it crams 209 classic fairy tales -- like "Snow White" and "Cinderella" -- into a single jam-packed play.

    So far, no word on who got what role -- if any -- but the odds are in their favor ... because the play has nearly 50 characters in it.

    And Banksy has got a humanitarian side to; he recently bailed out 2 Russians Graffiti artists. See article below.

    http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-12645902

    With L.O.V.E
  • trustno1trustno1 Posts: 654
    Perhaps Banksy was commenting on the media's creation of this "sinister" MJ character, it reminds me of the Simpsons episode where Bart says "...it's just something they invented to scare kids, like the Boogeyman or Michael Jackson,". I used to think this was a dig at MJ but if you read between the lines he's saying it was a creation, an invention, and indeed this was something that the media did, they created this false persona for him. And far too many people bought it. So maybe Banksy is being a social commentator here, or maybe he isn't. The man is a bit of a mystery to say the least.
  • 2006-11-25T095909Z_01_NOOTR_RTRJONP_2_India-277733-1-pic0.jpg
    Hollywood couple Brad Pitt (R) and Angelina Jolie ride a motorbike around Vietnam's southern Ho Chi Minh City November 23, 2006. Pitt and Jolie doled out candies and toys during a surprise visit to an orphanage in southern Vietnam, a state-run newspaper said on Saturday.. Photo Credit: REUTERS/Trung Nghia/Tuoi Tre Newspaper

    <!-- m -->http://www.sawfnews.com/Gossip/29007.aspx<!-- m -->
    Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie pick up Banksy’s art that mocks Michael Jackson!
    Angelina Jolie and partner Brad Pitt have bought a new painting by notorious artist Banksy in which he takes a pot-shot at the singer’s child abuse scandal.
    Washington, Dec 2 (ANI): Angelina Jolie and partner Brad Pitt might no longer be in Michael Jackson’s good books, for they’ve just become the proud owners of a new painting by notorious artist Banksy in which he takes a pot-shot at the singer’s child abuse scandal.

    The piece by Banksy, which features the dethroned king of pop standing in the doorway of a cottage trying to coax a young boy and girl into his house with sweets, is inspired by the classic fairytale Hansel and Gretel, and is apparently a reference to the child abuse scandal surrounding Jackson last year.

    The painting is not the only one that will be on display at Brad and Ange’s home, for the couple also picked up several other pieces of the artist’s work when they visited his recent Los Angeles exhibition, according to The Post Chronicle.

    However, for all his popularity, the artist - who began his career spray painting public walls - refuses to reveal his identity, for he will get into an awful lot of trouble with the law the moment he does.

    His previous works have not only included a portrait of two policemen locked in a homosexual embrace, but he also infamously replaced hundreds of Paris Hilton’s debut music album CDs with his own remixes earlier this year.

    And, to make matters worse, Banksy not only replaced song names with his own titles such as Why am I Famous?, What Have I Done? and What Am I For?, but also changed her picture on the CD sleeve, thanks to which Paris was left topless, with a dog's head. (ANI)

    This article is from 2006. Brangelina paid big money for a number of Banksy pieces, INCLUDING the Michael/Hanzel and Gretel piece. They are going to display this piece of art in their home full of children? Does not make too much sense to me. Thoughts?
  • rag dollrag doll Posts: 357
    What I personally find very intriguing about it is the fact, that it doesn´t even show an offensive scene but obviously the first association a great number of adults make is still a bad one.
    - Why? What exactly do we see when we look at this picture?

    By "placing“ the beholder behind the kids`s back, Banksy virtually invites us to take their perspective on this scene. I see a secluded cottage with a lonely looking MJ who reaches out and offers a candy cane to two kids, who seem to be lost and alone theirselves in this dark inhospitable landscape. The bright colors of the candy distinctly stands out against the dull background. Somehow it appears to be the only promising object within the gloom of this motif. (Maybe the candy symbolizes a pure kind of joy or happiness within a dark world?)

    The depicted gesture of M. doesn`t appear threatening to me, more the opposite. He bends down to the kids height and I see something very accomodating in his posture, humbleness and also gratitude, almost as if he was much obliged that someone finally found his/her way through the dark to visit him.

    We don´t see the children´s facial expressions but judging from their body language, they appear to be rather curious and attentive than anxious. All these things considered, I see the encounter of three lonesome characters who seem to be happy that they´ve found each other in a hostile environment.

    Btw it would be quite interesting to hear the opinion of a child on this picture.
    Possibly a first reaction could be: „There´s no Gingerbread house, no witch – this isn`t Hansel & Gretel“. Just a thought... <!-- s:geek: -->:geek:<!-- s:geek: -->
  • Thankyou for your reply @ragdoll. I agree with you 100% that the Banksy picture is open to interpretation. Does one see the picture in a negative or a positive light? Brangelina are humanitarians. It makes no sense to me that people with the level of compassion that I believe them to have, would buy such a picture IF they were "mocking" Michael, as this article states they are doing. The humanitarian/mocking-another-human-being thing just does not ring true for me. And, IF they bought this picture with the intent of "mocking" Michael, and display it proudly in their home, what would they tell their children, who would more than certainly be intrigued by the scene. I have a feeling that Brangelina are not afraid of a little controversy, and will stand up for a cause that they believe in, whatever that cause might be.
  • MJonmindMJonmind Posts: 7,290
    It kind of reminds me of Ghost, where MJ supposedly the 'weirdo' isn't wanted in the nice town. Though the kids are somewhat frightened they go against the wisdom of the mayor (perhaps media and general public), and they find out they are incredibly entertained and liking this mysterious figure (MJ). Sometimes in real life, people thought of as villians can turn out to be heroes instead and vica versa, depending on whose perspective is telling the story. Also in this painting case we don't know exactly how Banksy wanted people to think as he liked to raise controversy, modern fairy-story versions can have a twist or unexpected ending.
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