There is a Banksy show at Art Basel.
Before getting your hypebeast on, stop and consider the ramifications. Relax and take stock of the circumstances. Once on public walls, all five Banksy works being shown by Southampton, New York dealer Stephan Keslzer were removed from their original locations. Banksy himself has stated that Keszler, who is showing at Art Miami, has no right to sell the works.
Bansky, for all his satirical brilliance, is also something of a street art market mastermind. Recognizing the folly of selling street born murals—this would swiftly demystify them and destroy original intent—he flips studio works authenticated by Pest Control, which refuses to stamp authority on anything taken from the street.
Keszler can claim he has full right to sell the Banksy works in his possession. But, as the fine folks from Wooster Collective note, "showing these pieces at an art fair ultimately legitimizes the removal of all street art and this will eventually lead to the downfall of the street art movement that we and all of you helped build."
Head to Wooster Collective to read Marc and Sara Schiller's full reasoning for boycotting the show.
