Banksy has taken over New York in the last couple of weeks, leaving his stenciled artwork all over the place and creating little pockets of art appreciation every time someone spots the work. But for as many people as there are who want to enjoy the work, have their picture taken with it, and celebrate their own little moment in the history of street art, there are almost as many who want to either destroy the work due to their belief that Banksy is a sell-out or take it down and hang it up in their house. Because of this, Banksy supporters have started getting handsy with anyone who poses a threat to the artwork.
According to AnimalNewYork.com, a graffiti artist tagged Banksy’s latest creation–a stencil in Williamsburg showing two women walking over a stone arch–and was quickly taken down by the manager of the building it was on. Soon after, a group of people grabbed their own paint and began restoring the work as best they could.
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The street artist pulled a prank on New Yorkers earlier this month when he set up a street booth containing original stencils and sold them for $60 apiece. Passerby thought they were knock-offs, so only three people bought the works. They are valued at up to $30,000 (Molly Crabapple wrote a lovely piece about the whole thing here).
Images: Aymann Ismail/ANIMALNewYork
Lead image: Banksy.com