Fazzy With Balloon

My Dear Princess and Dear Fellow,

It was just over three years ago that me and Fazzy went to a surrealist art exhibition. All the same it is a special memory for both of us, we still talk about how much fun we had.

It's nice to have things like that in your history.

So when we heard about the Banksy exhibition coming to Wellington we decided to get tickets. Shahier wasn't interested and it's a trek for Caro to get out here. Just as three years ago, I don't know much about art or much about Banksy, but we both had a great time.

I suppose what I wasn't expecting was how funny the exhibition would be. The exhibition featured interviews with people who know Banksy and they talked about his projects. Apparently he went through a period of breaking into zoos and on one occasion they threw some of Banksy's stencils into the ape enclosure. 

"We ended up with a picture of an orangutan holding a banner that read, 'I'm a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here'," said the collaborator.

There were also Banksy quotes on the wall. Such as:

Most artists have an obsession that defines their work. Monet had light, Hockney has colour, I've got police response time.

We can't do anything to change the world until capitalism collapses. In the meantime we should all go shopping to console ourselves.

If you feel dirty, insignificant and unloved then rats are a good role model. They exist without permission, they have no respect for the hierarchy of society and they have sex fifty times a day.

- and - 

A regular 400ml can of paint will give you up to 50 A4 sized stencils. This means you can become incredibly famous/unpopular in a small town virtually overnight for approximately ten pounds.

There is a mean, cynical streak throughout his work. Also an anger and vicious political commentary. But some of those exhibits just made me laugh out loud. One of my favourites was a copy of the famous Tiananmen Square photo, only the fearless protestor is holding a placard that reads, "Golf Sale". 

Or the picture of an auction of a painting with the words, "I Can't Believe You Morons Buy This Shit" painted on it.

Or the prank he pulled when his "Girl With Balloon" piece was instantly shredded after it sold for one million pounds. Incidentally, the shredded pieces (in a bin) were sold three years later for TWENTY-ONE MILLION.

It does help to reemphasise his "morons" comment though. 

Then there was the Paris Hilton prank, when Banksy redesigned her debut album cover so that it featured her "hit" songs, "Why Am I Famous?", "What Have I Done?" and "What Am I For?"

His mate Danger Mouse also remixed all of her songs and then the pair went around London, stealing her CDs and replacing them with their own. 

You have to admire that sort of dedication to performance art.

Anyway, so it was a lovely afternoon with one of my favourite people on a lovely day. I even caught some sun! 

I wish all Wednesdays were like today. 

It's another treasured entry in the history of me and Fazzy. 

S.