Exit Through the Gift Shop

     I definitely enjoyed watching this documentary and seeing the world of street artists. I am not the hugest fan of pop art, contemporary art or street art, but seeing the artists and hearing from them and their philosophy behind their art gives me greater appreciation of their work. I enjoy the way the images are usually powerful graphics and grab one's attention; the art tend to say a lot within a simple design. However, sometimes it is hard to know what is being communicated. What does Elvis holding a toy gun instead of a guitar actually say about anything? Such art seems to be trying to grab our attention without any further statement or opportunity for reflection.
     Out of all the street artists shown in the documentary, I liked Banksy's work the best. He actually designed new, original images that had political or social messages. I was intrigued at the way he makes statements with his art. Also, I like how he said making art was never about the money. (Whether or not this is actually true is hard to say). Conversely, it was interesting to see how Terry, a less talented artist, did seem to be primarily interested in monetary gain through his art. I thought the way his show was recognized was mostly due to promotion by Fairey and Banksy, which shows how self-defining the high art world is these days. Fairey and Bansky are highly recognized, therefore the press recognized who these artists promote instead of taking the time to evaluate Mr. Brainwash's works on their own and aside from the hype.
     I was troubled by the way Mr. Brainwash creates art, as he hires others to create it, and all his work is a spoof of other art instead of having any original ideas. For instance, his Mona Lisa with an eye patch is more than a little reminiscent of Duchamp's L.H.O.O.Q. He mostly rips off Andy Warhol and sticks contemporary objects, such as guns, into photoshopped iconic images. Fairey and Bansky recognize Mr. Brainwash as bad art, but the art market at the time was fooled, which of corse causes me to wonder how they judge art and why certain art is legitimized.