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A man waits at a bus stop below graffiti art by Banksy on a wall in Great Yarmouth, one of several new works from his road trip in seaside towns portrayed in "A Great British Spraycation." Photo by JUSTIN TALLIS/AFP via Getty Images
Spraycation: Because A Wall Is A Very Big Weapon
Taking a break from the God-awful news - burning planet, dying children, racism unending, earthquakes - to join the "Great English Spraycation" of self-described "overrated graffiti artist" Banksy as he takes his ragged RV through a parade of seaside towns to create his latest marvels of art, wit, rage and joy. As ever, his new works - a panoply of children, dancing, rats, gulls, cranes, hermit crabs denouncing homelessness - simultaneously delight and illuminate our ills, confirming his maxim, "There's nothing more dangerous than someone who wants to make the world a better place."
Aug 14, 2021
We'll get back to the God-awful news - burning planet, dying children, earthquakes, corruption, the carnage of senseless lost wars, racism unending - which clearly isn't going anywhere. But for now what better way to take a break than joining street artist Banksy as he cruises through a parade of seaside towns in his ragged RV to create his latest marvels of art, wit, rage and joy. Days after reports of a possible string of new Banksy murals across coastal England, the still-anonymous, self-described "overrated graffiti artist" - "Nobody ever listened to me until they didn't know who I was" - confirmed the new works are his in a cool-unto-itself video of his "Great English Spraycation." Accompanied by a lively accordion rendition of Dance Monkey by Australian singer Tones & I, Banksy rambles through the modest towns of Lowestoft, Gorleston, Oulton Broad, Cromer, and Great Yarmouth, with fellow-travelers sometimes filming the son of Bristol at his furtive work.
Banksy's themes are very much of the world, with whimsy added: During the early days of COVID, he raised millions for health charities with his Game Changer kid playing with a superhero nurse; his Create Escape mural on the former Reading prison, its inmate escaping down a spool of paper, was a tribute to Oscar Wilde and the power of art from a guy who's argued, "Graffiti is one of the few tools you have if you have almost nothing"; locals suspect the spraycation is his way of helping hardscrabble areas win their 2025 UK City of Culture bids. As usual, his wry new pieces - a panoply of rats at play, gulls with chips, cranes plucking, folks dancing, hermit crabs personifying homelessness and kids battling climate change - manage to simultaneously delight and illuminate our ills, confirming his maxim, "There's nothing more dangerous than someone who wants to make the world a better place." Not everyone values his latest effort: His video drolly includes a cranky older woman declaring it "mindless vandalism." Nevertheless, he persists. "A wall is a very big weapon," he says. "It's one of the nastiest things you can hit someone with."
An Unconstitutional Rampage
Trump and Musk are on an unconstitutional rampage, aiming for virtually every corner of the federal government. These two right-wing billionaires are targeting nurses, scientists, teachers, daycare providers, judges, veterans, air traffic controllers, and nuclear safety inspectors. No one is safe. The food stamps program, Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid are next. It’s an unprecedented disaster and a five-alarm fire, but there will be a reckoning. The people did not vote for this. The American people do not want this dystopian hellscape that hides behind claims of “efficiency.” Still, in reality, it is all a giveaway to corporate interests and the libertarian dreams of far-right oligarchs like Musk. Common Dreams is playing a vital role by reporting day and night on this orgy of corruption and greed, as well as what everyday people can do to organize and fight back. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover issues the corporate media never will, but we can only continue with our readers’ support. |
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We'll get back to the God-awful news - burning planet, dying children, earthquakes, corruption, the carnage of senseless lost wars, racism unending - which clearly isn't going anywhere. But for now what better way to take a break than joining street artist Banksy as he cruises through a parade of seaside towns in his ragged RV to create his latest marvels of art, wit, rage and joy. Days after reports of a possible string of new Banksy murals across coastal England, the still-anonymous, self-described "overrated graffiti artist" - "Nobody ever listened to me until they didn't know who I was" - confirmed the new works are his in a cool-unto-itself video of his "Great English Spraycation." Accompanied by a lively accordion rendition of Dance Monkey by Australian singer Tones & I, Banksy rambles through the modest towns of Lowestoft, Gorleston, Oulton Broad, Cromer, and Great Yarmouth, with fellow-travelers sometimes filming the son of Bristol at his furtive work.
Banksy's themes are very much of the world, with whimsy added: During the early days of COVID, he raised millions for health charities with his Game Changer kid playing with a superhero nurse; his Create Escape mural on the former Reading prison, its inmate escaping down a spool of paper, was a tribute to Oscar Wilde and the power of art from a guy who's argued, "Graffiti is one of the few tools you have if you have almost nothing"; locals suspect the spraycation is his way of helping hardscrabble areas win their 2025 UK City of Culture bids. As usual, his wry new pieces - a panoply of rats at play, gulls with chips, cranes plucking, folks dancing, hermit crabs personifying homelessness and kids battling climate change - manage to simultaneously delight and illuminate our ills, confirming his maxim, "There's nothing more dangerous than someone who wants to make the world a better place." Not everyone values his latest effort: His video drolly includes a cranky older woman declaring it "mindless vandalism." Nevertheless, he persists. "A wall is a very big weapon," he says. "It's one of the nastiest things you can hit someone with."
We'll get back to the God-awful news - burning planet, dying children, earthquakes, corruption, the carnage of senseless lost wars, racism unending - which clearly isn't going anywhere. But for now what better way to take a break than joining street artist Banksy as he cruises through a parade of seaside towns in his ragged RV to create his latest marvels of art, wit, rage and joy. Days after reports of a possible string of new Banksy murals across coastal England, the still-anonymous, self-described "overrated graffiti artist" - "Nobody ever listened to me until they didn't know who I was" - confirmed the new works are his in a cool-unto-itself video of his "Great English Spraycation." Accompanied by a lively accordion rendition of Dance Monkey by Australian singer Tones & I, Banksy rambles through the modest towns of Lowestoft, Gorleston, Oulton Broad, Cromer, and Great Yarmouth, with fellow-travelers sometimes filming the son of Bristol at his furtive work.
Banksy's themes are very much of the world, with whimsy added: During the early days of COVID, he raised millions for health charities with his Game Changer kid playing with a superhero nurse; his Create Escape mural on the former Reading prison, its inmate escaping down a spool of paper, was a tribute to Oscar Wilde and the power of art from a guy who's argued, "Graffiti is one of the few tools you have if you have almost nothing"; locals suspect the spraycation is his way of helping hardscrabble areas win their 2025 UK City of Culture bids. As usual, his wry new pieces - a panoply of rats at play, gulls with chips, cranes plucking, folks dancing, hermit crabs personifying homelessness and kids battling climate change - manage to simultaneously delight and illuminate our ills, confirming his maxim, "There's nothing more dangerous than someone who wants to make the world a better place." Not everyone values his latest effort: His video drolly includes a cranky older woman declaring it "mindless vandalism." Nevertheless, he persists. "A wall is a very big weapon," he says. "It's one of the nastiest things you can hit someone with."
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