The unauthorized Banksy show that has been blitzing ads on your Facebook feed has been touting a secret location, but new details indicate you’ll exit through the Instagram trap.
There are currently three copycat unauthorized Banksy shows touring the world, and Banksy has specifically asked you to not attend any of them. “Members of the public should be aware there has been a recent spate of Banksy exhibitions none of which are consensual,” the popular underground artist says on his website. “They've been organised entirely without the artist's knowledge or involvement. Please treat them accordingly.”
One of these is entitled The Art of Banksy, and it’s been aggressively advertising its San Francisco engagement on Facebook and courting months-in-advance media coverage. And in its ads, it's been touting a run at a “secret location” starting this November, as if it were an underground art party or a renegade exhibition.
But we now know the location, and it is hardly underground or renegade. According to the Chronicle, the unauthorized Art of Banksy show will be exhibited at the Palace of Fine Arts.
“We couldn’t think of a better location than San Francisco’s Palace of Fine Arts to showcase this private collection of works by Banksy,” said Corey Ross, founder of the traveling “immersive” art show outfit Starvox that organized this exhibit.
With respect, Starvox founder Corey Ross, we would be hard-pressed to find a more incongruous location for the work of renegade graffiti artist Banksy.
Moreover, you will not be seeing original Banky works — this is along the lines of a collection of numbered prints.
Artnet ran an exposé on these unauthorized Banksy shows in August, detailing how some are just displaying reproductions. This particular show had been organized by Banky’s former dealer Steve Lazarides — who is no longer part of the show — and it is not accused of displaying fakes. Though Artnet does point out that this show is "predominantly screen prints — not the illegal graffiti paintings that invariably captivate the internet whenever they pop up in the wild."
Starvox is the same traveling art show group that brought the Immersive Van Gogh thing to town in the spring, and we do not mind admitting our disdain toward these “immersive experience” art shows. It seems they are Museum of Ice Cream-ifying Bansky’s work here, and what’s more, you’ll likely only see sprinkles of his original work.
Update: The organizers reached out to SFist to clarify that "All works [in the show] are certified by Pest Control as original and authenticated as Banksy artworks, prints or sculptures. The Art of Banksy does not display works that have been created by Banksy in outdoor locations. All works have been created by Banksy to be sold to collectors."
Related: Banksy Piece 'Rescued' From The Red Vic Swiped By Los Angeles
Image: @gxldy via Unsplash
This post has been corrected to show that Steve Lazarides is no longer involved in 'The Art of Banksy.'
