• BANKSY    editions

  • Napalm, 2004

    Screen-print on wove paper

    50cm x 70cm

    Edition of 650

    Napalm, 2004

    Napalm, 2004, is a print release epitomising a culmination of Banksy's most important motifs. Through a mixture of highly juxtaposed icongoraphy, this work presents a criticism of capitalism and war, creating a clear link between the two.
     
    By placing the iconic photograph, The Terror of War, of a young Vietnamese child, alongside two of the most recognisable figures of American consumerism, Banksy is creating a dialogue that could be interpreted in a variety of ways, however can undeniably be seen as equating the suffering imposed by both systems.

  • "I like to think I have the guts to stand up anonymously in a western democracy and call for things no one else believes in - like peace and justice and freedom"

     

    - Banksy

    The young girl in the image is from the famous photograph, The Terror of War, by Nick Ut. Taken in 1972 in a village called Trang Bang, he captured the suffering of the people there immediately after a napalm strike by the American Military. The girl depicted suffered intense burns and had her clothes incinerated by the explosion, placing her pain alongside the presence of the other children and the soldiers present indicates the shared experience and trauma they experienced as victims of the Vietnam war. Combining anti-war art history with well known capitalist icons, this work suggests that the viewer should contemplate the connections between war and consumerism, as well as who in society is most impacted by it.