- Title: Banksy art turns heads in London suburb shop
- Date: 1st October 2019
- Summary: UNION JACK STAB VEST INSTALLATION VARIOUS OF POLICE RIOT HELMETS STAB VEST INSTALLATION 'MET BALL' INSTALLATION ROTATING PEOPLE LOOKING THROUGH WINDOW AT EXHIBIT
- Embargoed: 15th October 2019 21:53
- Keywords: Banksy Croydon London suburb Stormzy
- Location: LONDON, ENGLAND, UK
- City: LONDON, ENGLAND, UK
- Country: United Kingdom
- Topics: Art,Arts / Culture / Entertainment
- Reuters ID: LVA002AZ9P8HZ
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: A pop-up art exhibition by street artist Banksy appeared in a shop window display in Croydon, south London on Tuesday (October 1).
The exhibition, which includes the Union Jack stab-proof vest he designed for British rapper Stormzy, appeared in the early hours of the morning on Church Street.
The 'showroom' entitled 'Gross Domestic Product - where art irritates life' will run for two weeks and is for display purposes only. All of the work will be sold online once the website is launched, a sign indicates.
Banksy said they were forced to set up his own range of branded merchandise to protect the name 'Banksy', following a greetings card company attempted to seize the name's legal custody, according to a sign at the exhibition.
A 'Tony the Tiger' rug, snarling his decayed teeth, is designed to be a "conversation piece - especially if the conversation centres around the UK spending over £7.8 million a year on tooth extractions for the under 5's", a sign indicates.
Other installations include a 'Met Ball' home entertainment lighting system made from a mirrored police riot helmet and a 'Baby Mobile', a crib flanked by security cameras, designed to 'prepare your baby for a lifetime of constant scrutiny both state sanctioned and self-imposed.'
This comes two days before Banksy painting of primates sitting in Britain's parliament is due to go under the hammer, expecting to fetch up to $2.5 million.
"Devolved Parliament", in which chimpanzees replace politicians, measures 13 feet (4 m) long, making it the largest known canvas by the secretive British street artist, according to Sotheby's.
Last year after another Banksy canvas, "Girl with Balloon", shredded itself in front of shocked onlookers at a Sotheby's auction just as it was sold.
(Production: Gerry Mey & Polly Rider) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
- Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2019. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
- Usage Terms/Restrictions: Audio restrictions: This clip's Audio includes copyrighted material. User is responsible for obtaining additional clearances before publishing the audio contained in this clip.
