Italy: Police bust crime network forging renowned paintings

Police seized hundreds of millions of euros worth of forged paintings attributed to Pablo Picasso, Andy Warhol, Banksy and others. The suspects allegedly attempted to sell the artworks at auction houses.

Paintings by American pop art pioneer Andy Warhol were among those forged

Image: Carabinieri/Handout via REUTERS

Police in Italy have seized more than 2,100 forged artworks that were attributed to dozens of greats like Pablo Picasso, Vincent Van Gogh, Andy Warhol and Banksy.

Investigators said on Monday that the artworks had a potential market value of €200 million ($215 million).

The chief prosecutor of Pisa, Teresa Angela Camelio, said experts from the Banksy archive assisted with the investigation and considered it to be "the biggest act of protection of Banksy's work."

Other artists whose works were allegedly forged include Salvador Dali, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Keith Haring, Claude Monet, Marc Chagall, Jackson Pollock, Piet Mondrian, Gustav Klimt, Wassily Kandinsky, Francis Bacon and many more.

Paintings by Pablo Picasso and Salvador Dali were among those allegedly forged by the criminal network

Image: Carabinieri/Handout via REUTERS

Police allege network of forgery workshops

Some 38 people were probed in an investigation that spanned Italy, Spain, France and Belgium.

They were suspected of conspiracy to handle stolen goods, forgery, and illegal sale of artworks, the Pisa prosecutor's office and Carabinieri art squad said in a joint statement.

Italian police uncovered two art forgery workshops in Tuscany and one in Venice. European investigations then identified three more workshops abroad.

Authorities said the investigation helped protect the work of anonymous street artist Banksy

Image: Carabinieri/Handout via REUTERS

The suspects were accused of producing the forged artworks in their own workshops before contacting Italian auction houses to sell the pieces.

The network of alleged forgers even organized entire exhibitions at prestigious locations in order to boost their credibility, completing with published art catalogs.

zc/rmt (Reuters, EFE)

UK

IRONY

Defaced Banksy gets ‘anti-graffiti’ protection

Tony Grew
BBC News
Adrian Zorzut
Local Democracy Reporting Service
EPA
The work was the second of nine works by Banksy to appear in London


One of London’s recent animal-themed Banksy artworks, vandalised shortly after being discovered, has been restored and will now be protected by an "anti-graffiti solution".

The work - of two elephants poking their heads out of blocked-out windows - was painted on the side of a house in Chelsea, before it was defaced with white stripes.

Council workers removed the unwanted additions and added a special coat to protect the artwork.

It was the second of nine works by Banksy that appeared across the capital over nine days in August.

Handout
The artwork was vandalised with white stripes of paint


Kensington and Chelsea council said the liquid is specially designed not to alter the appearance of the surface it is applied to.

Josh Rendall, who represents the ward where the piece is located, said: “We hope that residents and visitors enjoy this and our other Banksy piece on Portobello Road for many years to come.”

The appearance of Banksy’s works last month led to speculation about their significance, if any.

Search for meaning


James Ryan, CEO of Grove Gallery which sells Banksy originals and prints, told BBC London he initially thought the works had "politically charged and motivated messages, so the goat - references to Palestine and Gaza, and then the wolf crying for help - some kind of persecution".

Some of the works were removed shortly after appearing, while one, a howling wolf sprayed on a satellite dish in Peckham, south-east London, was seemingly stolen.

Two others were removed by London authorities - a silhouette of a cat on a billboard in Cricklewood was taken down for safety reasons; and piranhas painted on a City of London Police sentry box was moved so it could be viewed safely.

Banksy reveals his latest artwork on a London billboard: a black cat stretching

Associated Press

 Aug 10, 2024 #banksy #art #newsThe elusive street artist Banksy has revealed his latest artwork - the silhouette of a black cat stretching on a billboard in London. This is the sixth of his new series of animal-inspired pieces.

New Banksy artwork 'stolen' from above London shop

Agence France-Presse
August 8, 2024 

The wolf silhouette was located on the roof of an empty shop in Peckham

© HENRY NICHOLLS / AFP

The piece was the fourth animal-themed artwork that Banksy had installed in various parts of the UK capital this week.

The street artist, whose identity is unknown and the subject of feverish speculation, confirmed on Instagram that the works were his own.

The wolf silhouette was located on the roof of an empty shop in Peckham, southeast London.

Photos from the scene carried by local media show a person climbing up a ladder to retrieve the satellite dish while another holds the ladder for them.

Further images show an individual in shorts walking off with the piece of art.

"We were called to reports of a stolen satellite dish containing artwork at 1:52 pm (12:52 GMT) on Thursday, 8 August in Rye Lane, Peckham," London's Metropolitan Police force said in a statement.

"There have been no arrests. Inquiries continue."

The two elephants were depicted with their trunks outstretched © BENJAMIN CREMEL / AFP

On Monday, a Banksy of a goat precariously perched on top of a wall with rocks tumbling down appeared in Richmond, southwest London.


Then on Tuesday two elephant silhouettes with their trunks stretched towards each other appeared in Chelsea, southwest London.

On Wednesday, the black silhouette of three monkeys appeared on the side of a railway bridge as if they were swinging.

Several months usually pass between new Banksy artworks and this week's sudden spurt has sparked speculation among fans about their meaning.


© 2024 AFP

GRAFFITI IS PUBLIC ART

Banksy wows London with three animal artworks


By AFP
August 7, 2024


The artwork was the third Banksy in three days - Copyright AFP Yuri CORTEZ

One goat, two elephants, and now three monkeys: British street artist Banksy thrilled fans in London on Wednesday by installing his third new artwork in three days.

The animal-themed collection has sparked speculation about their message. Are they criticism of England’s far-right riots or possibly support for Palestinians? Perhaps they reference global warming or even the Olympics?

As usual, the enigmatic artist gave no explanation when he claimed them on Instagram. What is unusual is how quickly they have appeared — usually Banksy’s works are spaced several months apart.

On Monday, a depiction of a goat precariously perched on top of a wall with rocks tumbling down appeared in Richmond, southwest London.

“I think it’s actually a mountain gazelle from Palestine. So I think that work has to do with Palestine,” Daniel Lloyd-Morgan, a 60-year-old artist told AFP.

Then on Tuesday two elephant silhouettes with their trunks stretched towards each other appeared in Chelsea, southwest London.

On Wednesday, the black silhouette of three monkeys appeared on the side of a railway bridge as if they were swinging.

“Banksy is trying to get us to think and reflect about the ecological crisis that really threatens humanity,” university professor Fawaz Gerges told AFP as he admired the latest work.




“His focus seems to be on animals, on trees, on oceans and it’s an overarching theme of his in the past few months,” he added.

The artworks have appeared at a time when England is gripped by violent far-right, anti-immigrant protests over the murder of three girls. Demonstrators have targeted hotels housing asylum seekers.

Banksy, whose identity is unknown, has repeatedly shown sympathy for the plight of refugees.

At the Glastonbury music festival last month the artist launched an inflatable boat over crowds depicting dummy migrants wearing life vests.

Mystery Paris street artist ‘Invader’ glues up new work to celebrate Olympics and delight fans

The mystery French street artist known only as “Invader” has struck again – this time to celebrate the Paris Olympics. Invader has been cementing mosaics to Paris walls since the 1990s, usually at night and without permission. His works now dot all corners of the City of Light and his fans have a lot of fun hunting them down.

 (AP video: John Leicester)Photos

BY JOHN LEICESTER
 August 7, 2024

PARIS (AP) — The mystery French street artist known only as “Invader” has struck Paris again — this time to celebrate the Olympics.

Invader has been cementing his quirky mosaics to Paris walls since the 1990s, usually at night and without permission. He’s become France’s most international, invasive and intriguing contemporary street artist. His works dot all corners of the City of Light and his fans have a lot of fun hunting them down.

And now there’s a new, Olympic-themed one for them to find.

Invader cemented it to a wall on one of the River Seine’s embankments sometime between Tuesday and Wednesday. Using tiles to create the mosaic, it shows one of his signature Space Invader figures running. The work’s colors evoke the shades of blue that Paris Games organizers have used to decorate the city for the Olympics.

A representative for artist — who, like him, maintains anonymity — said by email to The Associated Press that “Invader told me to say that he wanted to celebrate the Olympics in Paris with this mosaic. The space invader is running and he wears some of the colors of the Olympics signage.”

The artist’s admirers can download his app, called “Flash Invaders,” and then use it to take photos of any of his works that they find.

When they do, the app awards them points. The more works they find and “flash,” the more points they get.

It’s addictive: The app has nearly 400,000 players.

The new mosaic is the 1,512th that Invader has glued up in Paris. Players get 50 points when they flash it with his app. Since the first catalogued mosaic of a blue Space Invader went up on a Paris street in 1998, numbered PA_01, Invader has colonized the world. There are now more than 4,000 of his mosaics in cities and towns on all continents except Antartica.

On Instagram, the artist posted a photo Wednesday of the new work and the words “Special Olympic Games Paris 2024,” with a jogger running past.

Catch up on the latest from Day 13 of the 2024 Paris Olympics:
Basketball: LeBron James, Kevin Durant and Steph Curry vs. Nikola Jokic is quite the matchup in the U.S. v. Serbia men’s basketball semifinals Thursday.
Track and field: Noah Lyles won the 100 by five thousandths of a second on Sunday night, and is a big favorite heading into the 200.

Keep up: Follow along with our Olympics medal tracker and list of winners. Check out the Olympic schedule of events.

That and a video post by the artist alerted admirers that there was a new work for them to find.

A small group of them quickly tracked it down, took its photo with the app, got their points, and spent time together admiring the work.

Super fan André Lavigne, a 64-year-old retired chemical engineer, was among the first to find and flash it. He is currently ranked in the top 100 players on the app, having tracked down 2,718 of the artist’s works in France and overseas.

In just the first few hours, the work was already generated buzz.

“I’ve seen many people coming and flashing and asking, ‘It’s a new one?’ And I say, ‘Yes, it has been put (up) last night.’ (They reply) ‘Oh, well, that’s extraordinary,” Lavigne said.

Another admirer, Gema Calero, rolled up on her bike and celebrated with a fist pump when she got her 50 points.

“It’s all fresh, it still smells of glue,” she said.

She says searching high and low across Paris for the works has taught her lots about the city and the value of looking around.

OLYMPIC PHOTOS: See AP’s top photos from the 2024 Paris games

“It allows you to look at life differently. You hunt around. You look up a little bit. Because normally when we walk we look at what’s in front of us,” she said. “It’s super.”

Like Banksy, the British street artist he is sometimes likened to, Invader is elusive, fiercely protective of his anonymity and operating on the margins of illegality. He comes, glues, and disappears into the night, leaving behind his signature pixelated mosaics made mostly with small ceramic and glass tiles.

Most resemble the aliens from the Space Invaders arcade game. Others are wonderfully elaborate, such as still lives of fruit or, in New York, portraits of Lou Reed and Andy Warhol. Some reference pop culture — Spiderman, Star Wars, Bugs Bunny, Ninja Turtles, pizza and the like.

Banksy confirms new goat mural in London

The new artwork appeared in Kew Green in south-west London

ByEmma Wilkes
5th August 2024

Banksy goat mural. Credit: Carl Court/Getty


Banksy has confirmed that he is behind a new goat mural in south-west London.Read More: IDLES at Glastonbury 2024: Banksy-assisted protest blows away even sky-high expectations

The piece in the elusive artist’s signature stencilled style appeared on a wall in Kew Green, Richmond, depicting a goat perched on a ledge from which rocks are falling.

A real life CCTV camera was pointed at the goat but it has since been moved to its original position.

Banksy claimed ownership of the work by posting a photo on his Instagram.




It is believed to be the first artwork he has created since he launched a new art piece in the form of an immigrant boat during IDLES‘ performance at Glastonbury 2024. The dummy-filled boat was launched into the crowd on the Other Stage during their pro-immigration track ‘Danny Nedelko’.

The boat was a visual reference to the current migrant crisis, which has become the focal point of then-Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s immigration policy. The stunt was criticised by then-Home Secretary James Cleverly, who called it “vile”.

He told Sky News: “There are a bunch of people there joking and celebrating about criminal actions which costs lives, people die. People die in the Mediterranean, they die in the Channel. This is not funny.”

In response, Banksy said: “The Homeland Security called my Glastonbury boat ‘vile and unacceptable’ which seemed a bit over the top. The real boat I fund, the MV Louise Michael rescued 17 unaccompanied children from the central med on Monday night. As punishment, the Italian authorities have detained it – which seems vile and unacceptable to me.”

The goat mural is the second mural of Banksy’s that has appeared in London this year. In March, an artwork painted behind a cut-back mature tree to look like foliage, with a stencil of a person holding a pressure hose, appeared on a wall in Finsbury Park.

 

Italy Detains “Banksy” Migrant Rescue Boat for Second Time

Louise Michel (note the Banksy artwork behind the pilot house window) was ordered detained for the second time by Italian authorities (Louise Michel)

PUBLISHED JUL 4, 2024 2:24 PM BY THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

 

 

Italian authorities for the second time in a little over a year have issued a detention order to a German-operated rescue boat that became famous because of its funding by British street artist “Banksy.” The group’s vessel Louse Michel had just returned to sea after a long maintenance period and completing the rescue of 36 individuals before running afoul of the Italian regulations.

Starting in February 2023, Italy enacted new regulations controlling the operations of the fleet of NGO rescue vessels combing the Mediterranean. Among the rules, the Coast Guard has the right to designate the port destination for the returning rescue vessels and failure to follow the instructions will result in being detained for 20 days.

According to the German NGO Louise Michel, rescue vessels were detained by the Italian authorities 13 times in 2023. Its vessel of the same name was detained in March 2023, and yesterday they reported the second detention order for the vessel. The group is “demanding the immediate withdrawal of the detention,” citing the continuing danger to migrants attempting to cross the Mediterranean.

The group Louise Michel reports that so far this year over 1,000 deaths or people gone missing have been recorded in the Mediterranean. For all of 2023, they report over 2,100 people lost their lives while it is expected that many others went missing and were never found. They assert over 53,000 people have been turned back to Libya or Tunisia in the ongoing crisis.

The well-known street artist Banksy reportedly approached the group in 2019 saying that he wanted to donate the proceeds from art done about the migrant crisis. The group used the funds to purchase a surplus 31-meter (102-foot) French patrol boat formerly used by the Customs Authority. It was renamed Louise Michel after a French anarchist. Banksy provided an artwork of a girl in a life vest holding a safety buoy and to make the vessel unique it was painted pink before starting its missions in 2020.

While the vessel is one of the smaller ships in the NGO flotilla, it is also reported to be one of the fastest. It is capable of reaching 27 knots, a speed that lets it outrun the Libyan Coast Guard.

The group reports the vessel conducted 18 rescue operations in 2023 with five volunteer crews. They assisted 923 people. At the end of 2023, the Louise Michel headed to a shipyard in Spain for a much-needed overhaul of the 30-plus-year-old vessel. They worked on the hull and the engines were removed for an overhaul.

The Louise Michel responded to Mayday relays from the EU Coast Guard Frontex on July 1 but only found an empty rubber raft. However, hours later into their mission, they found 36 people, including 17 unaccompanied minors in what the group says was an “unseaworthy rubber boat in distress.” The people were taken aboard the Louise Michel and given water, blankets, and medical care. The group reports that the Italian Coast Guard instructed them to sail to the port of Pozzallo, Sicily to disembark the rescued individuals. 

“As the weather on the route was predicted to be too bad for a safe journey, our crew decided to seek shelter closer to Lampedusa where, during the night, we then got permission to disembark all survivors,” the group writes. Hours later, the group was served with a 20-day detention for the vessel for not following the order to disembark in Sicily.

Banksy behind inflatable 'crowdsurfing' migrant raft at Glastonbury

By Mark Moran

Festival goers enjoy watching British singer Liam Gallagher perform on the Pyramid stage at Glastonbury Music Festival in Somerset on Saturday, June 29, 2019. The artist Banksy was behind a stunt that involved an inflatable boat that surfed the crowd meant to draw attention to immigration. Photo by Hugo Philpott/UPI | License Photo

June 30 (UPI) -- The street artist known as Banksy was behind a stunt during another singer's set at the Glastonbury music festival in England.

During Idles' set, participants lofted an inflatable life raft with dummy migrants atop the crowd and passed it forward, giving the appearance of the boat traveling along the water.

The raft was launched and crowdsurfed during the song Danny Nedelko with lyrics about an immigrant. It was a reference to the small boats carrying migrants across the English Channel, which have become a political lightning rod this year.

Immigration has been at the forefront of the snap elections called by England's Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. His immigration policy proposals have been the target of criticism and a focus of the Glastonbury festival.

People entering Terminal 1, an area dedicated to the topic of immigration, must answer a question from the UK government's citizenship test for would-be migrants.

At UK's Glastonbury festival: Music, sunshine and a call to vote

Revellers take selfies as they urge people to vote in the upcoming general election, at Worthy Farm in Pilton, Somerset during the Glastonbury Festival, Britain, June 27, 2024.
PHOTO: Reuters

PUBLISHED ON JUNE 28, 2024

GLASTONBURY, England — Amid the thump of reggae beats from a stage nearby, the leafy scent of cannabis in the air and the warmth of sunshine at Glastonbury, a big sign tells festival-goers to "use your superpower" and vote in Britain's July 4 election.

The Just Vote campaign has installed a large black cube to represent a ballot box at the sprawling and eccentric five-day festival in southern England, and is trying to target young people with its message.

With polls predicting an easy victory for Keir Starmer-led Labour, there is a sense that many young people — a demographic with lower turnouts at past elections — may simply not vote.


That is a worry for Labour. It has told its candidates that if voters believe the election is a done deal, the Conservatives could do better than expected.

Polling by YouGov shows the vast majority of voters aged 18 to 49 want the Conservatives out of office after 14 years in government, which have seen five prime ministers, a series of scandals, widespread strikes, failing public services and falling living standards.

But among those at Glastonbury, a magnet for some 200,000 revellers, some will use their vote as a chance to back smaller parties, others care about voting the Conservatives out — and some simply won't turn up at all.

Many said they had taken a Labour victory for granted, and they want instead to support parties more closely aligned with the causes that matter to them, from climate change to Gaza. Campgrounds at the festival are dotted with Palestinian flags.

Under Starmer, Labour has shifted towards the centre, moving away from the hard-left politics of previous leader Jeremy Corbyn, who in 2017 addressed a huge crowd at Glastonbury.

Back then, many in the crowd treated Corbyn like a rock star, singing his name in a football-style chant. Starmer has since renounced the Corbyn era, and Corbyn is now standing as an independent.

"I'm excited about change, but I don't really love the Labour Party," said 28-year-old Ellie O'Connell, from Salford in northwest England, considered a Labour stronghold.


UK polls point to 'electoral extinction' for Prime Minister Sunak's Conservatives

"I think he's trying to appeal to [Conservative voters]," she said of Starmer, adding that she planned to vote for the much smaller Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition party.

Charles Olafare, 34, said he doesn't see much difference between Labour and the Conservatives: "The choice between them ... doesn't really feel like much of a choice, and it's quite frustrating."

An advertising copywriter from south London, Olafare said he was considering voting for the Green Party, which has advocated more taxes on the wealthy, scrapping university tuition fees and bringing forward the UK's 2050 net zero target by a decade.

Many younger voters still want to choose Labour if that is the best chance of removing the Conservatives from office, such as 20-year-old Harvey Morrey, who reckons the race will be tight in his constituency in Crewe, central England.
Tactical voting

Others, like Louis Billett, 23, will not vote at all. Turnout among those aged 18 to 24 at the last election in 2019 was about 52 per cent, compared to about 81 per cent for those aged over 75, according to the British Election Study.

"I just don't know enough about it to vote and I just don't see anyone I'd like to vote for," Billett said as he sipped from a can of cider.

Billett, a cheese factory worker from Midsomer Norton, 16 km from the festival site, who described himself as working class, said Corbyn was the one politician he "sort of had any respect for".

The Just Vote campaign, backed by Labour donor Dale Vince, is targeting people like Billett, and is managing to convince some to vote, but not everyone, said campaign volunteer Verel Rodrigues.

Sammy Henderson, 23, said she supported the Green Party but was considering Labour this time if that would help keep the Conservatives out of power — her overriding objective rather than any desire to see Starmer as Britain's next prime minister.

Glastonbury: How politics accompanies the music of the festival

Festival-goers will be familiar with Glastonbury's mix of music and politics. But this year's event is held just days before a General Election.

By Katie Spencer and Gemma Peplow, arts and entertainment team, at Glastonbury
Saturday 29 June 2024

Image:Pic: Yui Mok/PA

Glastonbury is no stranger to mixing music with politics, and with the general election just days away and protests against the Israel-Hamas war ongoing, this year has been no exception.

Artists from Damon Albarn to Charlotte Church have been vocal about their thoughts on the war on stage - and reflected back at them, a notable number of Palestinian flags are being held aloft by those in the crowds.
Sponsored link

Closer to home, while the looming election means planned visits by Labour's Angela Rayner and the Greens' Caroline Lucas were shelved, Mayor of Manchester Andy Burnham did give a speech, and installations such as a large black cube representing a ballot box, by the Just Vote campaign, are here to impress on people there is one way to make a difference.

Elsewhere, during Idles set on Friday night, an inflatable life raft with dummy migrants was propelled into the crowd - a stunt the band have reportedly claimed was orchestrated by Banksy, although there is no official word from the anonymous artist on this yet, which they were not aware of until afterwards.

While Glastonbury is about escapism, what's going on in the wider world matters also clearly matters to a lot of people enjoying the festival.

Gossip frontwoman Beth Ditto at Glastonbury

Ahead of their set, Gossip frontwoman Beth Ditto told Sky News that as an 18-year-old, voting for the first time, no one explained to her why it mattered so much - and that it is important now to encourage younger people especially.

"Absolutely," she said. "The hard thing about youth is that you don't realise how fast that 20 years goes and you're not 20 anymore. You don't realise you only have however many elections in the next 15, 20 years, what a big difference they make."

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She continued: "It's about the money that's being spent for your future… there's so much more going on, so much deeper, that really will affect you."

However, Ditto said younger generations are also helping to inspire change. "I also want to say that they're going to save us all, Gen Z and Gen Alpha."

On Saturday, Labour's Andy Burnham told about 100 people who came to see him speak that Sir Keir Starmer will not "bulldoze" local government if he wins the election.

"I think it will change if Labour get in, it will improve, but it won't stop being very difficult," Mr Burnham told the crowd.

Meanwhile, a timely performance of Things Can Only Get Better, the D:Ream song that became the soundtrack to Tony Blair's 1997 electoral victory and more recently Rishi Sunak's sodden election announcement - got a huge reaction from the crowd on Friday.

:D:Ream perform Things Can Only Get Better at Glastonbury

Meet Glastonbury's State Of The Ground Guy

But is there also apathy among some?

Cast your mind back to 2017 and you might recall then Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn receiving a rapturous reception on the Pyramid Stage - the crowd echoing with people chanting his name.

For socialist singer Billy Bragg, the mood has not been quite the same this year.

"If you go out there and offer people a vision of a better world, then people respond," he told Sky News. "And I think Corbyn is the proof of that… [Nigel] Farage as well, he promises something to his people. It might not be something I believe in or that I think it's going to work, but you've got to offer something to people other than, you know, steady as she goes, managerialism."

Charlotte Church performs at Glastonbury. Pic: Ben Birchall/PA

Charlotte Church, who joined Bragg's Radical Round-up on the Left Field Stage, sang "free Palestine" with a crowd of hundreds during her performance.

The singer's appearance at Worthy Farm comes months after she said police had to check on her because her safety and that of her family has been threatened after she took part in a pro-Palestine march in London.

The 38-year-old strongly denied claims of antisemitism at the time and voiced her support for Jewish people.

During his surprise appearance on stage with Bombay Bicycle Club on Friday, Blur's Damon Albarn addressed both the general election and global issues.

"Are you pro Palestine? Do you feel that's an unfair war?" he asked the crowd, before highlighting "the importance of voting next week" and adding: "I don't blame you for being ambivalent about that but it's still really important."

While many praise the artists for supporting causes they believe in, there are also those on social media who have complained about the mix, saying musicians should focus on the music.

But like it or not, politics is very much still a part of the Glastonbury experience.

JEWISH. INDEPENDENT. NONPROFIT.

Whose art is it anyway? Inside the cultural battle between pro-Israel and pro-Palestinian protesters

Since the war broke out, debate has raged over the political meaning of art
S


Does this child see the anti-war in Picasso’s Guernica or something else entirely? Courtesy of Getty Images

By Mira Fox

May 17, 2024

At a Seder at Yale’s protest encampment this spring, students put their arms around each other and swayed. “If we build this world from love, then God will build this world from love,” they sang, gathered around a sheet painted as a Seder table.

The words are lyrics from Olam Chesed Yibaneh, a Hebrew folk song composed by Rabbi Menachem Creditor, who wrote it for his oldest child’s naming ceremony in 2002. But despite the fact that Creditor himself has a long history of progressive activism, he was irate to see his tune sung at a pro-Palestinian protest. In an interview with the Forward, he said that the students were “misappropriating its message of love and support for Israel,” using his song about peace to obscure the antisemitism that he believes lies at the heart of the pro-Palestinian protests.

Yale Jews for Ceasefire, the group hosting the Seder, in a statement responding to Creditor, said that, for them, the song imagines “a future where Israelis and Palestinians can live in peace, in a world built from love.” They were undeterred by Creditor’s disagreement with their cause, saying that they “respect” his own interpretation of the song, but reaffirming their embrace of Olam Chesed Yibaneh.

Art — paintings, music, books, movies — has become part of the culture war swirling around Israel and Gaza that has been gaining steam steadily since Hamas’ attack on Oct. 7 and Israel’s subsequent response. Concerts have been canceled and art has been damaged by protesters, all part of a battle over the political meaning and value of art.

Art has always had an uneasy relationship with political messaging, and utility. Does it hinge on the art itself or the artist’s intentions? Or something else entirely?

Is art’s political message ever clear?

Banksy’s graffiti “Rage, Flower Thrower” in Bethlehem, in the West Bank. Courtesy of Getty Images

Plenty of art is overtly political, aiming for a clear message. It’s hard to miss the point of the piece in this year’s Whitney Biennial that spelled out “Free Palestine” in blinking lights — though, in fact, it took some time for the museum to notice. The guerilla artist Banksy has painted graffiti in Bethlehem and Ramallah, images of doves in military vests and a militant in a kaffiyeh hurling a bouquet; these pieces too, by virtue of both their placement and content, seem to make a clear political statement.

But often, it’s not so obvious. Pablo Picasso created numerous anti-war paintings, including the masterpiece Guernica; earlier this year, protesters brought Palestinian flags to demonstrate in front of the piece, an attempt to underline its message, and another artist used its imagery in her own work about the horrors of Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack.

Yet even a piece like Guernica, today perhaps best known for its anti-fascist message, might not seem like it’s about war at all if you haven’t heard about it or read the helpful wall text. The cubist work is full of horses and faces, but also abstract shapes and shadows, a disembodied arm holding a lantern. Indeed, in its time, Picasso was criticized for the work’s ambiguity.

The artists’ identity

Artists can’t always control the impact of their work, but their identity can still, sometimes, shape its message. When the 2017 Whitney Biennial featured a painting of a mutilated Emmett Till in an open coffin, what the artist intended as an indictment of anti-Black racism was seen as emblematic of it; protesters saw a white artist co-opting and making a spectacle out of Black pain. The fact that this wasn’t what the artist intended doesn’t change the message that audiences took away from it.

This case is not unlike that of the Jewish reggae artist Matisyahu, who writes songs about peace. His anthem “One Day” is, in a literal sense, clearly a song about peace for all. Nevertheless, the artist has had numerous concerts canceled since the war broke out; some audiences today interpret his music as supporting war since he’s a Jewish, Zionist man who performed at the March for Israel in Washington, D.C., this past November.


For the seemingly avid users of a list of authors’ stances on Israel, which supports writers it has identified as pro-Palestinian and discourages people from reading books by those it has deemed Zionists, the actual content has nothing to do with their value; that’s defined entirely by their authors’ identities and social media posts.Jackson Pollock’s One: Number 31, 1950. Courtesy of Getty Images

Who gets to say what any given work of art means has been debated throughout history. The ideas evoked by staring at Jackson Pollock’s splatter paintings, for example, are as abstract as the pieces themselves. Many people walking into a gallery don’t know that Pollock was part of the abstract expressionism movement or steeped in Jungian psychoanalysis, nor do they apply that lens to attempt to understand his art.

But you don’t need that information to connect to the power, color and movement of his work, just like it’s possible to connect to Taylor Swift’s breakup ballads without being a Swiftie steeped in the pop star’s dating history. I grew up singing classical choral music, almost all of which was written for the church, and I still find the requiems and masses deeply moving despite the lyrics praising Jesus. Am I engaging with this music wrong?
Seeking clarity in abstraction

Nevertheless, people seem hungry for instructions about which concerts to attend and which to protest, which books to read and which to decry, what art is good — morally and politically speaking — and which is bad. Since Oct. 7, lists have been circulating, telling anyone, depending what political circle they’re in, which celebrities or influencers, writers or actors, are canceled. People want a simple, definite answer. That’s easier to get if you’re willing to boil the art itself down to its creators’ opinions. But that’s against the nature of art.

“While there is one text for Hamlet, every person who sees the play sees a different Hamlet. Moreover, every time you see Hamlet, it is different,” wrote New York Magazine’s art critic Jerry Saltz in a 2018 piece about how to be an artist. “This is the case with almost all good art. It is always changing, and every time you see it anew, you think, How could I have missed that before? Now I finally see! Until the next time it rearranges your thinking.”

Perhaps it’s easier to accept the mutability of a work when the artist is dead, unavailable to dictate what it “really” means, their own lives far enough removed from our own that we can encounter their work directly. But today, many artists are actively attempting to use their art for political purposes, and tell the audience what it’s supposed to stand for.

Last month, numerous authors withdrew their work from consideration for the PEN America Literary Awards; they said the organization had not done enough to protect Palestinian writers.

While they succeeded at making a political statement — the awards were canceled, the prize money donated — that impact isn’t necessarily about the novels themselves, but instead about book sales and fanfare. It may earn those authors brownie points from the pro-Palestinian books list and praise from certain corners of the internet, but it isn’t directly related to the artistry of their work. If there is any related political impact, it has to do with proving that it’s more profitable for authors to make statements supporting Palestinians, perhaps encouraging more authors to do the same. But the contents of the books themselves are unchanged by their authors’ personal political action; they remain good, or not, and anyone can declare them best of the year — and, indeed, the titles remained on PEN America’s public list of finalists.

“The art scene often confuses art’s soft power with the power to wield public sentiment and direct public action,” wrote Seph Rodney, the former senior critic at Hyperallergic, in a piece about the debate surrounding a new public art installation which adds a female figure to the statuary at the New York State Supreme Court. Action, he points out, is “something that humans do, not inanimate objects.” Artists can take political action but their art, by itself, cannot.

Still, their art can have a political impact. It can inspire, it can cause people to question new things or reach a new understanding through empathy or emotion. And art can empower artists to have a political impact — after all, the PEN America boycott would never have had any impact at all had PEN not given the artists a public platform. It’s a potent, convoluted mix of forces.

But art, still, has a life of its own; the artist can’t control it any more than any individual observer. You can, of course, show people new interpretations, encourage them to look more deeply or from another perspective. You can reject someone else’s interpretation of a piece, or change your own. But ultimately, you can’t control what anyone else thinks art means. A song designed to be pro-Israel can become an anthem for pro-Palestinian protesters. And maybe there’s not really any contradiction there, after all.



Mira Fox is a reporter at the Forward. Get in touch at fox@forward.com or on Twitter @miraefox.

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BANKSY HAPPY SPRING

 

‘It’s spring now, and this tree should be bursting forth with leaves, but Banksy must have cycled past and thought how miserable it looks. So, on St Patrick’s Day, he has taken exactly the same shade of green Islington Council use for their street signs and used a pressure hose or a fire extinguisher to spray the leaves back in, onto the rather dilapidated wall behind,’ he said  

(Picture: Sarah Hooper) Provided by Metro

James Peak, creator of BBC Radio 4 series The Banksy Story, said the message from the latest piece 'is clear'. 'Nature’s struggling and it is up to us to help it grow back,' he said. ‘If you go way back to the beginning of his work, he is always looking for something he can do with minimum effort to make something look really cool' 

Public gather in London to view suspected Banksy art work | Watch (msn.com)

         

Alien or art? I trekked to the mysterious Welsh monolith to find out


Gwyneth Rees
Sat, 16 March 2024 

Gwyneth Rees braved the wind and the rain to see the monolith that has appeared on top of Hay Bluff - Andrew Fox

On a sunny day, there would be many good reasons to don my walking boots and hike up Hay Bluff to its summit.

Not only is it set in the beautiful border territory of Wales and England, with sweeping views down onto the Wye Valley, it’s also just four miles south of the historic market town of Hay-on-Wye, packed with delightful book shops.

Then there’s the fact that it’s a convenient walk – 1.7 miles there and back – and part of the Offa’s Dyke national trail, with a satisfying trig point on the top.


But today, in the lashing rain, with minimal visibility and the mossy ground treacherous underfoot, there can be only one reason to make this journey – to see for myself the monolith that has mysteriously emerged on this mountain top and become the talk of the town, if not the world.

The 10ft non-magnetic structure, made from metal sheets forged into a triangular prism, appeared on the hilltop last weekend, prompting claims a UFO had landed.

The 10ft structure is made from metal sheets forged into a triangular prism - Andrew Fox

Speculation as to its origin – particularly on TikTok – was feverish. Had it been dropped by a helicopter? You certainly couldn’t drive it to the hilltop. Had it been carried up by local artists? Was this paying homage to the monolith in Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey, to which it bears a striking resemblance?

The strange feature was spotted by local builder Craig Muir, who said he was “taken aback” as it looked like “some sort of UFO”.

“It seemed like a very fine metallic [material]. It looked perfectly levelled and steady, despite the weather being windy.”

Craig Muir said he assumed the monolith was 'some sort of UFO' - PA

Since its discovery, locals tell me the car park has been full, and that tourists are heading to the town just to see it.

But on the day of my visit with The Telegraph photographer, because of the lashing rain, we are relatively alone.

The only people we meet are two walkers, both teachers from Clevedon High School, who have just dropped a pile of sixth formers to undertake a hike for their Duke of Edinburgh award.

'We have no idea how it got there': local teachers Mark Davies and Tony Battista had come to see the monolith for themselves - Andrew Fox

Tony Battista, 50, says: “It’s bizarre, really extraordinary. Well worth seeing. Maybe it’s done by a rural Banksy?”

His colleague, Mark Davies, 49, adds: “It is fascinating and quite eerie. No doubt the kids will see it later and be full of conspiracy theories. But we have no idea how it got there.”

As we continue our walk, the monolith mystery is none the clearer to me or the photographer, who is cursing the rain and worrying about his camera.

The main ascent up Hay Bluff is almost vertical, the sort of track that makes you wish you were a goat. A winding path does snake off the side, omitting the worst of the ascent, but even that is full of twists and precipitous drops, with large steps carved in to supposedly ease the journey.

Gwyneth makes her way up Hay Bluff in the lashing rain, with minimal visibility - Andrew Fox

Given that February was one of the wettest on record, everything is precarious. Could people have carried such a structure up here? Only if they were mad.

But it seems the only viable option.

It would be unlikely that the structure was made up there, given you would need equipment, and would still have to carry the metal sheets.

But a helicopter expert, who did not wish to be named, dismissed the idea of a helicopter being involved.

He said the only way to fit a 10ft monolith inside a helicopter would be in a military one, but a helicopter with lifting tackle could potentially dangle it underneath for a short distance.

The expert also advised a helicopter would not fly to the top of a mountain at night as it would be deemed too dangerous.

When we make it to the top, it would be nice to describe the views, but we can’t see anything. A surveying trig point stamped with the red Welsh dragon reveals a height of 677 metres. I’m so pleased to have made it, and so drenched, I almost forget why we are here.

“There it is,” cries the photographer, pointing off to the right. “Oh yes,” I say. And what a strange sight.

Set a hundred metres or so from the trig point, and in among tussocks of boggy heather, it’s there.

We inch closer, dodging the pools of stagnant water and moss. It’s real, at least. Hollow, but seemingly held up by an interior pillar.

To inspect it, I take off my shades, which have been keeping the rain from my eyes. There’s more metal in the ground, which has clearly been exposed by those keen to check its foundations. These appear to keep it weighted and upright, but even then it is blowing about in the wind.

Nestled among tussocks of boggy heather, the monolith fits the scene well – but there's no real function to it - Andrew Fox

It does fit the scene quite well, given that it’s misty. But it’s not very Bauhaus, as in there’s no real function to it. You can’t even check your make-up in the reflection. We have no idea why anyone would set it here. Unless they are making a point against health and safety?

“What do you think?” I ask the photographer.

“It’s just to get people talking,” he says.

“And walking?” I add.

“Yep. That too.”

If it is to get people talking, it has done the job. Not least because it is not a one-off but part of a global collective.

The first monolith was spotted in Utah, Arizona, in 2020 by scientists during a helicopter survey of wild bighorn sheep. Satellite imagery later revealed it had been there since 2016.

Two weeks after it was discovered and removed, another monolith appeared, this time 13ft tall and in Romania.

Since then, dozens more have been spotted across the world, including in South America and Europe.

There are monoliths in Germany, Spain, the Netherlands and Turkey.

In the UK, they have been planted on a beach in the Isle of Wight, at the top of Glastonbury Tor, in the middle of Merry Maidens stone circle in Cornwall and on the fields at Dartmoor National Park. That one had the words “Not Banksy” carved into it.

But despite their proliferation, no one is really clear why they are there or who might be behind them.

The Most Famous Artist – an artist collective group in Tucumcari, New Mexico, which specialises in low-cost high-impact art projects – has suggested it may have created the initial Utah monolith.

“I’m here to say: I didn’t do the monolith, but I didn’t not do the monolith,” the collective’s founder, artist Matty Mo, helpfully said in a 2020 Instagram post.

But no one has claimed responsibility for the ones in Europe. And indeed, Banksy’s representative has denied he is involved.

It is hardly the first time, however, that mysterious art has appeared on our shores.

In the late 1970s and 1980s, the arrival of crop circles, with their intricate patterns, baffled farmers and sparked calls of alien activity and a connection to ancient hill forts and burial mounds.

The arrival of crop circles, like this one in London's Kew Gardens, have sparked calls of alien activity - Reuters

But in 1991, two farmers, Dave Chorley, and his friend Doug Bower, from Winchester in Hampshire, admitted they had been making them since 1976.

At the time, Dave told local news: “We wanted the UFO society to think a UFO had landed. After a few years they didn’t know whether to believe it or not.”

The tricksters revealed they travelled the countryside at night using a plank and a piece of rope to make the curious shapes, which appeared throughout Wiltshire and Hampshire.

Later, Dave’s son, Jim Chorley, told the BBC: “They were out on a Friday night and come back at 4 or 5 in the morning, and would put a little piece of corn on the kitchen table.

“They saw it as kind of a folk art form; it was the biggest canvas they could possibly ever use.

“They weren’t prepared for some of the backlash [when they came out]. I can understand why people still need to believe in the magic of it.”

Inevitably, there may be some who believe the appearance of these puzzling monoliths may be the work of external forces.

Daniel Jolley, social psychologist at the University of Nottingham, who specialises in conspiracy theories, says: “To me, this is entertaining. We don’t know why it’s been done.

“But to some who believe in conspiracy theories, this is even more exciting. It draws them in, like a movie.”

He says people who believe in conspiracy theories – for example, that these monoliths are from outer space but covered up by governments – are generally more anxious people who need answers to our complex world.

He adds: “People try to make sense of events, they seek answers. They struggle with uncertainty and have a distrust of authorities. They look for patterns and motives so they feel a little bit of control.

“Other people can just accept that these monoliths are there and we don’t know why.”

One mystery monolith appeared in Utah, 2020

To contemporary art curator and critic Ellen Stone, however, they are an accessible and entertaining form of art.

She says the monoliths resemble huge pieces of metalwork made by American artist Richard Serra. Currently, magnificent pieces of his are spread across a kilometre of desert on Qatar’s Zekreet Peninsula.

She says: “For me, art is about three things – the creator, the context and the community of people who view it.

“But when these monoliths are unclaimed, you have the death of the author, so it is up to the viewer to decide what they mean.”

She says the fact the monoliths have popped up around the world is probably because they are relatively easy to make.

“Any artist with basic metal work skills can make one. And just like with the crop circles, it enables people to be part of something larger.”

She adds that where they are placed is “incredibly important”.

“The landscape is so important,” she explains. “The monoliths hark back to druid structures and single stones across our rural landscape.

“Plus it’s looking at 2001: A Space Odyssey in referential form. The monolith there was a stand-in for God and knowledge.

“It is a mysterious object and open for debate and meaning, just like these monoliths.”

Either way, back in Hay, locals seem delighted with the new addition.

James Walton, owner of The Old Black Lion Inn, says: “It’s certainly strange. But it’s nice that it’s been done in Hay.

“Locals are talking about it and are very intrigued as to how it got there.

“This is a special town, and it has definitely added to the mystique.”

He wishes to encourage people to come and see the monolith, and perhaps drop in for a pint on the way.

But as my photographer and I had to slide down the treacherous Hay Bluff on our backsides, narrowly avoiding ending up in A&E with sprained ankles, I can only suggest coming on a sunny day.

Legal row could finally force mystery artist Banksy to reveal his real name


Two art collectors are taking legal action against artist over his ‘refusal’ to confirm the authenticity of one of his famous images



Dalya Alberge

Sat 9 Mar 2024

His identity has long been a matter of speculation and investigation, but Banksy may be forced to reveal his real name if a dispute over a print of the late Queen Elizabeth depicted as a bejewelled primate ends up in court.

Two art collectors are taking legal action against the graffiti artist’s company, Pest Control, following its apparent refusal to confirm the authenticity of Monkey Queen. After three years of trying to get an answer, Nicky Katz and Ray Howse have lost patience and are suing Pest Control for breach of contract.


They point to Pest Control’s website, which states that it will issue a certificate of authenticity for “paintings, prints, sculptures and other attempts at creativity”. It likens the certificate to “an MOT for the art world”: “[It] means you can buy, sell or insure a piece of art knowing it’s legitimate and the wheels won’t fall off.”

Banksy, known for his stencil-based images, has described himself as a “quality vandal” ridiculing authority figures through artworks in public places. His partially shredded painting Love is in the Bin sold for more than £18.5m at auction in 2021, while his signed prints sell for five and six figures. Pest Control was set up by the artist in 2008 after fake prints were sold online and it plays a key role in the market for his work. An authentication certificate is vital to achieve the maximum price when selling his work, it has been claimed.'

Massive Attack’s Robert Del Naja, pictured at a 2013 exhibition, has been suspected of being Banksy. Photograph: Oliver Rudkin/Shutterstock

Banksy’s real identity has been a celebrated mystery among the media and public for decades. Massive Attack’s Robert Del Naja, Jamie Hewlett of Gorillaz and Neil Buchanan, the former host of TV’s Art Attack, have all been suspected.

In 2008, the Daily Mail “unmasked” him as Robin Gunningham, a then 34-year old former public schoolboy, although the artist denied this. No one has been able to absolutely link Gunningham and Banksy. To do so would destroy his mystique and potentially the price his work fetches.

A 2003 interview with a BBC reporter contains the only known instance of him revealing his first name. In the recording, which has recently emerged, Banksy is asked if his real name is “Robert Banks”, to which he replies: “It’s Robbie.”

Katz and Howse say they have tried in vain to obtain a verdict from Pest Control either way on whether Monkey Queen is one of Banksy’s genuine prints from a limited edition of 150.


They sent the artwork to Pest Control, explaining that they had acquired it for £30,000 in 2020 from the estate of a recently deceased, established Banksy collector, but that there seemed to be no accompanying paperwork detailing its collecting history.

Katz, 65, a Londoner who owns a quarry and an art collection that includes a large number of Banksy works, said that Monkey Queen is worth between £55,000 and £70,000 and he is outraged by Pest Control’s delay: “We’re in no man’s land, and it’s a lot of money. They claim to be the official validators of this artist’s work. But this has been going on for three years. They’re just sitting on the fence – they won’t say whether it’s right or wrong. We have had our tails pulled for the whole three years.”

He said, addressing Pest Control: “‘You’ve had the work; you’ve inspected it. Is it right or is it wrong? That’s the service that you claim to provide. If it’s wrong, that’s OK, because we will have a claim on the estate the piece was bought from. If it’s right, great. Just give us the paperwork we need to validate it.’ They’re not providing a proper service.”

Legal action is now the only option, he added: “We’re suing Pest Control for breach of contract. They’ve had three years to do what I paid them [£50] to do, which by any standard is plenty of time to deal with the situation.”

The Banksy artwork Well Hung Lover, in Bristol, was defaced by paintball in 2009. 

Photograph: Christopher Jones/Rex


He added: “I am very disappointed with Banksy. He has made it impossible for anyone to validate a piece of his work without his certificate. That affects the value of his work dramatically. If I had a painting by Leonardo da Vinci, there is no ‘Leonardo Control’ to validate it. I would simply take it to the experts to tell me whether or not it’s a work of art by Leonardo da Vinci. In the case of Banksy, even if you have expert opinion saying that the piece is one of his, if it doesn’t have a Pest Control certificate, you can’t rely on that expert.”

John Brandler, a leading specialist dealer in graffiti artists, said: “I believe that this is a genuine Banksy, but it has taken three years for these ­collectors to get nowhere with Pest Control. This is pure market manipulation, because Banksy will only certify works that he wants particular individuals to have.

“That’s not authentication. If someone discovers a Titian in an attic, nobody says: ‘Who are you and why have you got it?’ It’s a Titian or it isn’t. With Banksy, it’s: ‘Who are you and why should I tell you?’”

But Brandler observed that Banksy’s prices are “well down on what they were three years ago”. He singled out Police Car, which depicts a vehicle lifted up on bricks: “Two to three years ago, it would have fetched between £1.5m and £2m. It sold in Paris about a month ago for €300,000.”

Pest Control said: “Our authentication process is robust and thorough and sometimes protracted. We have issued many thousands of certificates of authenticity.”