Why we should all be a bit more Banksy

We are aware of criminal damage to a City of London Police box in Ludgate Hill,” declared Detective Chief Inspector, Andy Spooner. "We are liaising with the City of London Corporation who own the police box." 

The police may own the box, but who owns the art? 

Last month, we saw some familiar sprayed-on stencils crop up around the UK. You’d be forgiven for mistaking the “criminal damage” for something more sinister than a makeshift aquarium. The police may own the box, but who owns the art? 

Above: Banksy used a City of London police box as one of the canvases for his most recent art project. 

Beginning with a mountain goat in Richmond, followed by a pair of elephants in Chelsea, then a trio of monkeys spotted down Brick Lane, a slew of zoological species at once populated the streets of London, and the Instagram feed of artist Banksy. As if running from the wildfire of frenzied societal tensions, the animals on the loose carved a biblical tableau of Jumanji-esque graffiti into the public consciousness. You could call it Banksy’s Ark. 

The animals on the loose carved a biblical tableau of Jumanji-esque graffiti into the public consciousness.

The meaning? We may never know. The mystery merely adds value to brand Banksy. But, according to The Guardian, the new series was meant to cheer us up, to be seen as a welcome interruption to the negative news cycle, both domestic and international. Propaganda of sorts. Have a proper gander below. 

Above: An image from Banksy's Instagram feed, showing his most recent artistic additions to the landscape around us.  

Picking up a spray can – like picking up a pencil – can become the most radical of acts. In a few deft sprays, a satellite dish morphs into a moon, a tattered billboard transfigures into a cat’s scratching post, an abandoned Nissan Micra seduces a horny friend. 

What can we, as creatives, learn from this latest series?

Meanwhile, each image on Instagram amassed, on average, around one million likes, as they brought new meaning to the surrounding public environment. No sooner were they revealed, than they were swiftly removed, defaced or stolen altogether. The installation may be gone but the idea lives on.

Banksy (begrudgingly) shows us how it’s done 

Yes, the haggard billboard with an out-stretched feline is a searing critique of our industry. Banksy once wrote: "People are taking the piss out of you every day. They are on TV making your girlfriend feel inadequate… They are the advertisers and they are laughing at you." 

But what can we, as creatives, learn from this latest series? No fakery, no committees of client feedback involved. Pen and paper or canister and canvas, this should inspire the ad industry’s creatives to get back to basics. And to keep it real. 

Above: Advertising billboards should be more aware of their surroundings, like the examples above. 

What Banksy does so well is demonstrate the power of visual context and of bending the rules. Simply, it’s a masterclass in conceptual creativity. With his site-specific art he achieves what advertisers crave – impact, memorability and fame. He shows us our ideas don’t have to be shouty if they’re original, distinctive and creative. 

Something magical happens when we respect our readers, with a wink and a nudge.

Yet most of his pieces, hidden in plain sight, wouldn’t pass advertising 101. They don’t brazenly interrupt, they subtly surprise. And they pop up in the most unlikely places, almost camouflaged, before letting you go your own way. The artist shows how the world is your canvas and that ideas don’t need to live within a frame. Without the windows, train tracks or chippie sign that his art adorns, there is no meaning. 

Amusing interruption 

So, perhaps billboards should be more aware of their surroundings, be that through art direction, copy or placement. Maybe we should even disregard the four sides of the frame. Something magical happens when we respect our audiene, with a wink and a nudge. We’re no longer making fun of them, as Banksy denounced. We’re making it fun for them. We’re bringing them in on the joke, rather than being the butt of it.