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Banksy: Caught In The Act And Unmasked?

londonist.com — New photos purport to show infamous graffiti artist Banksy as he creates a new mural in London. The artist's identity has remained a mystery despite his work fetching thousands of dollars at auction. Could this finally be him?

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  • MattnJax, on 10/31/2007, -8/+16Could be him. The guy creates some cool stuff.
  • seks03, on 11/02/2007, -4/+37nice! this guys a genius, awesome work Banksy
  • Cenobite, on 11/09/2007, -3/+120The mystery should remain alive. If his true identity is revealed the "myth" will die just a little.
    • GafferXL, on 11/02/2007, -1/+34Exactly the allure of Banksy's art is that it represents truth, but doesn't hold the artist up to character flaws.

      I'd rather he retain his anonymity.
    • SkippyDoorknob, on 11/05/2007, -2/+13It's the dread pirate Roberts!
    • hybridcreation, on 10/31/2007, -0/+6It would die completely.

      Let the guy continue to work in anonymity.
  • kweeky, on 11/02/2007, -1/+85Buried in the hope he will always remain masked!
  • Obligation, on 10/31/2007, -4/+19I always figured he does all of his work at night.
    • manicallday, on 10/31/2007, -0/+9Actually, I have his last book and he described that he was able to do one piece in broad daylight because the cops wear visors and the piece was just too high to see.
    • walkar, on 10/31/2007, -0/+14There's a video on his site where he walks up to a blank billboard on the street, sprays a sentence (something along the lines of THE JOY OF NOT BUYING ANYTHING), and walks off. Plenty of people saw him and just walked by, glancing over their shoulders at him.
      Interesting fellow, Banksy.
      • charlie55, on 10/31/2007, -7/+2i am sure the poor people of the world are with him and love not buying things.
  • wetmetalthong, on 10/31/2007, -2/+20this guy doesn't need to be unmasked. if he wants publicity, he'll ask for it.
  • PEMDAS, on 11/09/2007, -2/+122So we know he's Caucasian and about two and a half feet tall when squatting. SECRETS REVEALED!
    • hybridcreation, on 10/31/2007, -0/+4Yep...pretty vague unmasking, I would say. :D
  • o0adam0o, on 10/31/2007, -11/+6Lets bury it!
  • hendrixlives64, on 10/31/2007, -5/+24buried
    keep him secret!
  • WindJackal, on 10/31/2007, -18/+4This could be any street artist. There's more than one stencil artist working in the UK with skills. Just because it's good stencil stuff doesn't mean it's allways him.

    I hate it when these things come out, even if it was him. Who cares honestly? The police have his name anyway and he's managed to avoid arrest so far with that.
  • Cydril, on 10/31/2007, -7/+11buried, let him be anonymous!
  • burley25, on 11/09/2007, -2/+79iIf you happen to read up on Banksy then you will find out that infact he has tens if not hundreds of other graphitti artists that do most of his work for him now, he just comes up with the designs. This guy could just be an "employee" as such.
    • Nick519, on 10/31/2007, -0/+3warhol 2.0?
    • MarkOfTheDead, on 10/31/2007, -0/+4Sounds like project mayh.....uhhhh.....

      This......thing I've heard about.........that's.......not important....
  • Typhoon2009, on 11/09/2007, -3/+8Wait, how the hell do the cops not find him? What the hell do they think is going on behind those curtains?
    • WindJackal, on 10/31/2007, -2/+16Police aren't that common in some places, you could spend a few weeks without seeing a sing police car where I used to live.
      • senatorpjt, on 10/31/2007, -0/+5Must be nice. Especially if even when you do run into a cop, he's British.
        • dinostabOMG, on 11/04/2007, -1/+3Unless you're Jean Charles de Menezes.
    • KingGorilla, on 11/09/2007, -1/+2monkey sex
    • Frosty122, on 11/01/2007, -0/+1i thinks it's also a case, where they don't want to find him, alot of people in london respect him, and like what he does.
  • Weather, on 10/31/2007, -2/+8Nancy Drew where are you?!
  • joshua5, on 10/31/2007, -29/+9"His real name is Robert Banks, a 32-year-old from Bristol"
    http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/5346822.stm

    Hmm... Well that was easy. Nice one, submitter!
    • Chaoticfist, on 10/31/2007, -19/+1bury this *****
      • ghettodev, on 10/31/2007, -1/+5Yah bury him fast. London police will never discover valuable clues from some obscure news organization like the ***** BBC but the big red Digg Alarm 5000 will go off at MI5 any second now. Idiot.
  • limezor2, on 10/31/2007, -3/+22At any rate, Banksy is one great artist.
  • ItsMyWii, on 10/31/2007, -26/+3Not that great...I could do that.
    • EvaMonkey01, on 10/31/2007, -2/+6...go on then, let's see it.
      • sathia, on 10/31/2007, -4/+2he was ironic, it's the obvious sentence of the barbarians at any given museum
    • hybridcreation, on 10/31/2007, -0/+6Link?
    • dinostabOMG, on 11/09/2007, -0/+2PICS OR IT DIDN'T HAPPEN
  • moebob24, on 10/31/2007, -14/+5I hate when people speak about something they have no clue about. Banksy is in no way a graffiti artist. He never does a piece with his name. He is just a street artist not a graffiti artist. There is a difference.
  • ZentraediElite, on 10/31/2007, -1/+5As sly as he is, I highly doubt it's really him.
  • rdeal1, on 10/31/2007, -13/+1that sucks he was caught, i mean i guess you dont want anything vandalized, but some graffiti is really cool, ex:
    http://www.collegehumor.com/picture:1709088/contex ...
    • iFungus, on 10/31/2007, -6/+1Please die.
    • laasch, on 10/31/2007, -9/+1I could claim that I am producing performance art by pissing on your door. Intrusive, vandalizing, and destructive acts aren't art, no matter what someone might say. If I wanted a flower painted up the side of my building, I would pay someone to do so. If someone wants to take a picture of me, they have to ask my permission. How is this crap, "street art" or graffiti considered actual art? I'm sick and tired of pseudo=intellectuals claiming that someone has something fresh and new to contribute, when in fact all they are doing is violating the rights of others.

      Personally, I want such bozos thrown in jail.
  • RVSTY, on 11/09/2007, -2/+8These pics show more than one artist painting. Also, if we are to assume that Banksy is the guy squatting in front of the wall in the second photo, then it seems he left a self-portrait of himself in the third photo, unmasking himself.
    • jaymz168, on 10/31/2007, -4/+1The person in the third photo is painted on the wall.
      • silveravnt, on 10/31/2007, -0/+1Yeah, It's painted. Not a portrait. Oh, wait...
  • flink405, on 10/31/2007, -5/+9Someone told me banksy is actually several different people....group of artists. Heard they are three guys - Bob Anderson, Nathan King and Sid Youngstown (take their initials).
    • 68024, on 11/09/2007, -1/+24In that case it's a good thing Bob isn't called Will.
    • squeekme, on 10/31/2007, -0/+2ive heard similar things, that it is infact more than one person. if you look at a collection of Banksy pieces and compare them it seems very possible. although i still think it could easily be one person. the mystery is great!!
  • Tyorant, on 10/31/2007, -1/+14He revealed his face in his book about 2 years ago.
    It was great, the first picture had him standing in the shot holding a blurred/pixaled image of his own face infront of his real face, then at the back of the book there was the same shot however he was just holding the image to one side to reveal his cheeky grinning self.
  • gtapro92, on 11/03/2007, -7/+10is it just me or is it always raining in england, even when i was there
    • wellyuk, on 11/03/2007, -2/+28No, it's not just you. it does always rain here. The UK has two seasons - winter and july and we didn't even have july this year.
      • wellyuk, on 11/03/2007, -5/+14What the ***** did I get dugg down for? Jesus.. who are these *****.
        • qualish, on 11/01/2007, -1/+13I'm not sure Jesus will respond to that question.
        • algo, on 10/31/2007, -0/+5we had july, it was in april though.
    • EvaMonkey01, on 11/01/2007, -1/+19Thats not true... we had that half hour of sun back in the spring of 1987.

      Many a school child was frightened that day I can tell you.
    • Urusai, on 11/01/2007, -0/+14I've seen plenty of British shows, and there is never any sun. Oh, once I think I saw some sun on a Dr. Who episode, but that was probably special effects.
  • tw0k1ngs, on 10/31/2007, -1/+11Do not pay attention to the man behind the curtain!
  • urbandistrict, on 10/31/2007, -6/+2You Faile. (see what i did there!)

    None of the two look like Robert at all.
  • soot, on 10/31/2007, -1/+3I enjoy seeing his work in books and magazines, but I wish I could live in London and see and touch it for myself. Even though he uses rollers and stencils his art has an unmistakable style and I think the mystery surrounding him and his work is pretty cool.

    I don't think this is the first exposure piece on Banksy I've seen though, to be honest. Just google "banksy + face" and you'll come up with some other hits.
  • naonao, on 10/31/2007, -1/+6Banksy should remain as he always has been. A mystery. And I doubt he would be careless like this after keeping his identity secret for so long.
  • br0ken1128, on 10/31/2007, -2/+1http://www.briansewell.com/artist/b-artist/banksy/ ...
    • keeperofkeys, on 10/31/2007, -0/+1Doesn't look like the guy in these pictures. He also looks too old! According to that same page, he is 33.
  • ejpusa, on 10/31/2007, -6/+3I believe this is a NYC graffiti artist famous for his flowers in NYC's Lower East Side. NOT Bansky. But I could be wrong. Similar? Notice the big green stencil from the streets of NYC and compare it to the flower by "Bansky" http://www.razorapple.com/wp-content/uploads/2006/ ...
  • astounded, on 10/31/2007, -7/+5actually this is banksy. Confirmed image from YEARS ago, and featured in the evning standard: http://web.archive.org/web/20040804220917/www.affl ...
    • watcht, on 10/31/2007, -0/+3good thing that 50% coupon was there, otherwise people would have paid attention to his picture.
    • KingGorilla, on 10/31/2007, -0/+1why do you want to reveal banksy? is it for the diggs?
  • ejpusa, on 10/31/2007, -4/+1Woops, right URL to compare to:
    http://www.razorapple.com/wp-content/uploads/2006/ ...
  • wblackh, on 10/31/2007, -4/+2the design is pretty lame so id say its not his best work either way. def. a house painter though - gloves, 2" brush, mask. he didnt pick that up as just a writer. and yes he does sign his work, as incorrectly stated above. London artists focus on the one-liner too much! come on brits not everything needs to be a damn joke.
  • rkzda, on 10/31/2007, -0/+4Is this Chloe afraid to walk up and snap a good pic, or use the zoom? Come on.
  • treed, on 10/31/2007, -1/+8I am Banksy!
    • melski, on 10/31/2007, -0/+3No, I am.

      But seriously, I don't care that's him or not, it just adds to my love of his work!
      • str3ama, on 11/02/2007, -0/+1I am Spartacus! I'm also the Lindenburg Baby, Amelie Earhart,
    • mrcabnit, on 10/31/2007, -1/+1False, you are not banksy.
      • 68024, on 10/31/2007, -0/+6In that case, logic determines that YOU must be banksy! (seeing as you would be the only one who unequivocally knows)
        • mrcabnit, on 10/31/2007, -1/+0Bears, Beats, Battlestar Galactica.
    • keeperofkeys, on 10/31/2007, -0/+4I am Banksy, and so is my wife.
    • whistlerpro, on 10/31/2007, -0/+2No, I AM BANKSY!
  • NF102307, on 11/01/2007, -21/+0Bansky and all other stencil 'artists' are essentially failed grafitti artists with no skill. Anyone with a scanner and photoshop can do what this charlatan does.
  • teethless, on 10/31/2007, -8/+1banksy is a business man first, an artist second and a human third
  • tasaturi, on 10/31/2007, -4/+1banksy chalks in 3d, so it appears to be stannding, he does not draw it as is, besides, he has photos of himself in his graffiti. no mystery.
  • hybridcreation, on 10/31/2007, -0/+2Why would he keep himself (themselves?) a secret for so long, then just let his pictures be taken by any random passer-by right on the sideway?

    Either way...I say let his identity stay a secret.
  • dogstylee, on 10/31/2007, -6/+1... what an eyesore... who would want a huge yellow daisy drawn on the side of a building in their street...?
    • bays, on 11/01/2007, -0/+5give me a stark poo-brown wall any day of the week am i right fella
    • algo, on 10/31/2007, -0/+3i guess you've never been to the street in question ;)
    • Nick519, on 11/01/2007, -0/+2i would.
  • 68024, on 10/31/2007, -0/+1Well, I still wouldn't recognize him in the streets from those photos. Love the originality of his work, though.
  • ubergeek09, on 10/31/2007, -0/+4I do hope he doesn't get arrested, but these pictures don't really give you a good picture of what he looks like, so he doubt he will. He is crazy good, does some insane stuff, even if it is illegal.
  • ehmjay, on 10/31/2007, -1/+4he's gotten "unmasked" before - hasn't stopped him

    hope it doesn't cause the man is a genius!
  • KingKudos, on 10/31/2007, -0/+2buried to keep the secret alive
  • funkytaco, on 10/31/2007, -1/+5http://www.banksy.co.uk/
  • fkneh, on 10/31/2007, -1/+2Umm sorry to be a dick but does the name Robert Banks mean anything to anyone here?

    I'm sorry if this is not true, I haven't been into a lot of banksy after they got a photo of him, but I do have his book...
  • automidnight, on 10/31/2007, -0/+4Well it's not about who can do it... it's about who does. Stencil artists are not 'failed graffiti artists' execution is half the battle.
  • rupert0, on 10/31/2007, -1/+2Could be him to
    http://www.banksy.co.uk/outdoors/images/landscapes ...

    ... but the mystery remains
  • str3ama, on 11/01/2007, -3/+3I always suspected that it was a group rather then just one guy, and it looks like there's 2 guys in that pic. He's a great culture jammer...and the thing is that culture jammers need to be nameless, raceless, ageless, sexless - they essentially should not exist conventionally.
  • etx313, on 10/31/2007, -0/+3So is the title a statement or a question?

    I agree with other, Banksy needs to be anonymous. We had a similar phenomenon going on here in Detroit. Some guy tagged the whole city with little turtles over the course of a year or so. People began to copy his work, and once he came out and identified himself it was basically over with.
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