Banksy Was Here

We were gifted a visit to the “unauthorized*” Banksy exhibit: “Banksy Was Here” in Philly by my awesome SIL and her boyfriend.

*The exhibit uses quotation marks around this word which makes me think it’s a commentary on both graffiti and Banksy. Graffiti, since it is commonly found on buildings and the like, one would conclude it is always authorized for public view. And Banksy, because though his identity is unknown, as the exhibit shows, he has authorized exhibitions of his work in the past.

Walking through the exhibit is not quite as exciting as finding a Banksy out in the wild but I found it to be a fun and informative little compilation of Banksy’s work.

We saw a studio recreation based on one that Banksy himself created in 2009. It was dizzying.

We got to “create*” our own graffiti in a few different places.

I wish these words could appear often during daily life.

*There go those quotation marks again. This time, I think you can figure out their significance.

We saw a lot of Banksy classics.

And learned about a no longer operating theme park of Banksy’s and The Walled Off Hotel which opened in 2017 and is still an active hotel today.

This piano was somehow connected to the hotel, but no significance was given.

Overall, it was a fun day learning about and exploring the work and motives of Banksy.

It was also a reminder that Hubby has three framed prints which remain with all our other artwork and framed pictures out in the garage waiting to go up on our new walls.