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Banksy, Banksquiat, 2019.
Screen-print on black or grey board, 70 × 70 cm.
© Banksy.
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"All artists are at risk of being turned into brands — the trick is to stay unpredictable."
— Banksy
Banksquiat is Banksy’s homage to Jean-Michel Basquiat, but also a biting critique of how capitalism absorbs and repackages rebellion. By turning Basquiat’s symbol of raw creativity into a ride, Banksy highlights the tension between authenticity and commodification, how radical art is often recycled into logos and merchandise.The monochrome palette, punctuated by chalk-like crowns, creates a visual link to both Basquiat and Keith Haring, recalling Haring’s subway chalk drawings and the street-level energy that launched both artists into the art-historical canon. With this work, Banksy places himself within that lineage, while exposing the irony that even dissent eventually becomes part of the spectacle