Side by Side: Jean Michel Basquiat, Banksy — Causing Reaction
Banksy Analysis-(Method for Madness)
At the “Barely Legal” gallery in Los Angeles, September 2006, Banksy stirred up reactions through a single choice of art having an elephant painted to match the wallpaper stand in the room. There were two main reactions detected by the audience; what was supposed to be an awareness of the problem that billions of people live under the poverty line and another reaction that followed was anger of the possible abuse of this elephant being painted. However this isn’t the first time Banksy created chaos for the purpose to expose and cause reaction.
More recent controversy issued by Banksy in the infamous “Dismaland” tied to when he “smuggled a life size statue of a Guantanamo Bay detainee into Disneyland”(E-Anne Wang)and posted it beside a fence inside a ride. He purposely used Disneyland to express the idea that there is a War on Terror with individuals being tortured yet anyone can simply go to this theme park to “escape from reality”. To bring it back to Dismaland, this new park is nothing close to joyous fun with admirable characters roaming the grounds. Instead it mocks the idea of Disneyland with destruction and chaos symbolized in structures and broken or disheartening figured statues of real worldly issues already loved Disney characters.
Basquiat Analysis-(Method for Madness)
Currently there is the issue of poachers killing elephants to obtain their ivory tusks and profit whatever they can. Basquiat shows within the Untitled sketch that an elephant is being taking apart to be totaled for profits. Different animal parts are seen multiple times within the sketch expressing the taking apart of the elephant that can be used for sale. The elephant species are endangered with a select numbered few remaining, this sketch relates to the idea of purposely bringing to light the issue that is being ignored. This isn’t the only piece of art where Basquiat used art to call out a message that hadn’t been normally recognized.
Jean Michel Basquiat started off as a artist living on the streets using graffiti to send his message with the signature name of “SOMO” also known as Same Old Shit. He’d call out the status quo as a way to fight against to Same Old Shit forcefully revealing to society what needs to be seen. This made Basquiat different than the other artist of his time, it is a new concept that art doesn’t have to be pretty or easy to the eye. Art causes a reaction to the audience whether there is a purpose behind it or to simply cause a sensation.
Relation
Both Banksy and Basquiat are one of the top most influential artists of the world for more reasons than one. To highlight a great similarity between the two, they both started off with graffiti moving the world through street art. Bombings in cities world-wide or just in New York opened the eyes of or social status’ attracting all to recognize what is so easily ignored. Banksy attracted movie stars Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie to his “Barely Legal” art gallery bringing more of an audience and Basquiat caught Andy Warhol’s artistic attention that shot forward his career moving up from street graffiti.
