Populist Art by Banksy

Banksy is a leader in a new engaging art form called street art. Banksy’s art is postmodern because it questions grand theories, ideologies and social norms in our society. His art points out the flaws in our society. Although some may consider his art to be graffiti and vandalism, Banksy argues it represents the voice of people to whom no one listens. Banksy’s art is for everyone; it is impossible to ignore a beautiful and poignant image on a wall. Banksy’s art is used to make points and as a tool to get a message across to everyone not just the elite. The art he creates lives amongst the people, making it real and hard to ignore. In Banksy’s book “Wall and Piece,” he writes “There is no elitism or hype, it exhibits on the best walls a town has to offer and nobody is put off by the price of admission.” In this quote, Banksy describes the importance of street art and its virtues, illustration how his art is postmodern. Furthermore, the fact that Banksy keeps his identity hidden contributes to the postmodernism of his artwork. He doesn’t accumulate lots of money or personal fame from his work; instead, he uses it as a tool to make people think and question society.

Shown below in an image of one of Banksy’s many works of art. It is startling because it depicts a girl searching a soldier instead of what we might expect to see: the soldier searching the girl. It makes us think about the idea of one person searching another, reminding us that it is weird and violates a person's privacy. It also raises the question of who has the right to search people, and what gives a person that right.