Banksy announces first solo art exhibition in 14 years in Glasgow
Graffiti artist Banksy has announced his first solo exhibition in 14 years titled CUT & RUN: 25 years card labour.
The exhibition will open at the Glasgow Gallery of Modern Art on Sunday, June 18. It will showcase works from across Banksy’s career, stretching from 1998 to 2023. New stencil versions of some of his famous pieces along with the original sketches behind them will be featured as well as some which have never previously been seen.
A few of Banksy’s famous pieces such as ‘Girl With a Balloon,’ ‘Mobile Lovers’, which depicts a couple embracing as stare at their own phones over each other’s shoulders, and ‘Kissing Coppers’, which first appeared on a wall of the Prince Albert pub in Brighton in 2004, will be on view.
CUT & RUN: 25 years card labour aims to reveal the behind-the-scenes process of how his works are made. The large exhibition also includes a detailed model explaining exactly how Banksy managed to shred his Girl With Balloon painting during an auction at Sotheby’s in London in 2018.
The exhibition will also include various items such as Banksy’s own toilet, the Union Flag stab vest worn by Stormzy when he headlined Glastonbury in 2019, and pieces previously only seen in Bethlehem in the West Bank, including a pillow fight between an Israeli soldier and a Palestinian citizen.
In a statement, the artist shared: “I’ve kept these stencils hidden away for years, mindful they could be used as evidence in a charge of criminal damage. But that moment seems to have passed, so now I’m exhibiting them in a gallery as works of art. I’m not sure which is the greater crime.”
On choosing to have the exhibition in the Glasgow Gallery of Modern Art, he explained that it is due to his “favourite work of art in the UK” is located right outside the museum. Banksy is referring to a statue of the Duke of Wellington that sits directly in front of the museum which famously always has a cone on it.
He shared: “This might sound absurd and pretentious (just wait until you see the rest of the exhibition) but it’s my favourite work of art in the UK and the reason I’ve brought the show here.”
Banksy’s most recent solo show was 2009’s Banksy versus Bristol Museum, which included a burnt-out ice cream van in the main entrance hall, playing out spooky sounds as a giant ice cream melted on its roof.
In other news, it was rumoured that the artist had bought a historic pub in Glastonbury.
According to reports, The Crown underwent an extensive renovation project prior to opening, and is said to now feature decor that includes work by Banksy and his friend Dorcas Casey, who featured in his Dismaland Exhibition in 2015. ITV also claimed that the pub has clearly had “a lot of money spent on it”.
Earlier this year, it was reported that Banksy’s Valentine’s Day artwork would be relocating to Dreamland in Margate. The artwork, which originally arrived in Kent town on February 14, depicted a 1950s-era housewife who has a bruised eye and is missing a tooth —seemingly highlighting domestic violence against women.
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Anagricel Duran
NME
