Banksy is being sued, which may force the artist to reveal his identity
Kyiv • UNN
Two collectors have sued Banksy Pest Control for refusing to authenticate a Monkey Queen print depicting Queen Elizabeth II as a jeweled primate, potentially forcing the anonymous graffiti artist to reveal his identity.
A controversy over an engraving of the late Queen Elizabeth II depicted as a jeweled primate may lead to the revelation of the identity of a famous British political activist and graffiti artist.
This was reported by UNN with reference to The Guardian.
Context
Two collectors, Nicky Katz and Ray Gose, sued Banksy's Pest Control company for its apparent refusal to confirm the authenticity of the Monkey Queen.
A company set up by Banksy in 2008 to prevent counterfeiting issues a certificate of authenticity or other confirmation for Banksy's work that comes to it for a fee of £150 (about 175 euros).
Nicky Katz and Ray Gose sent the graffiti artist's company an image of Queen Elizabeth II as a monkey adorned with jewelry, which they claimed to have purchased for £30,000 (€35,200) in 2020 from the heirs of a Banksy collector who recently died.
The collectors contacted Pest Control three years ago to confirm that the work was indeed part of a limited edition of 750 copies, 150 of which were signed. But they have not received any response since then.
They are currently suing Pest Control for "breach of contract.
Who is hiding behind the pseudonym Banksy
This question has haunted the art world and the general public since the artist made his name in the 1990s while remaining anonymous.
Banksy started his career in the 90s, when a strong underground scene was forming in Bristol, UK. For some time he worked in several art groups, including the DryBreadZ Crew, which included his friends Kato and Tes. In the early noughties, the artist moved to London and settled in Hackney, East London.
Banksy's sharply social and funny works appeared in various cities in the UK. At that time, the artist was already popular, his works were of high quality and brightness.
At the same time, a real war broke out between the British state services, which tried to wash away the graffiti, and NGOs, which tried to preserve the drawings on the walls.
In 2002, the artist held his first exhibition, Existentialism, in Los Angeles. In 2003, Banksy opened it for a few days in an unnamed London garage, which generated a huge queue of visitors.
It should be noted that the artist combines street art, popular culture and social activism in his work: Banksy's works carry anti-consumerist, anti-war, anti-fascist and anti-imperialist messagesand.
It is difficult to count the exact number of Banksy's works; his drawings are regularly resold, painted over, destroyed, and walls with them are often removed.
However, Banksy documented most of them from the very beginning of his career.
Banksy's true identity has remained a mystery to the media and the public for decades. Robert Del Naja of Massive Attack, Jamie Hewlett of Gorillaz, and Neil Buchanan, former host of the television program Art Attack, have all been suspects.
In 2008, the Daily Mail tabloid allegedly "identified" Robin Gunningham, a 34-year-old former public school student at the time, as Banksy. But the artist denied it, and no one has been able to establish an absolute connection between Gunningham and Banksy.
Collectors' lawsuit
For now, Katz and Gose claim that they have unsuccessfully tried to get a response from the Pest Control Service to confirm that The Monkey Queen is one of Banksy's authentic prints.
According to the Guardian, 65-year-old Londoner Katz, who owns a quarry and art collection that includes a large number of Banksy's works, says he is outraged by Pest Control's delay:
We are on no man's land, and this is a lot of money. (...) For three years we have been held by the tails
A lawsuit is now the only option, he added:
We are suing Pest Control for breach of contract. They have had three years to do what we paid them to do, which by any measure is enough time to sort things out
John Brandler, a leading graffiti artist sales specialist, said: "I believe this is a genuine Banksy, but it took these collectors three years to get anywhere with Pest Control. It's pure market manipulation because Banksy only certifies pieces that he thinks specific people should have.
Pest Control said:
Our authentication process is robust and thorough, and sometimes lengthy. We have issued many thousands of certificates of authenticity
Recall
In London, two arrests were made for theft and damage to Banksy's painting depicting drones and a stop sign.
Two men in south London stole Banksy's work depicting drones on a stop sign.
