Exit Through The Gift Shop is a film directed by Banksy that tells the story of Thierry Guetta, a French immigrant in Los Angeles, and his obsession with street art. The film shows Guetta's constant documenting of his every waking moment on film, from a chance encounter with his cousin, the artist Space Invader, to his introduction to a host of street artists with a focus on Shepard Fairey and of course Banksy, whose anonymity is preserved by obscuring his face and altering his voice, to Guetta's eventual fame as a street artist himself. I don’t often like the work of street artists,
However i do admire the work of Banksy, whose public art shows his contempt for the government labelling street art as Vandalism. His clever use of stencils gives his work and intricate detail without being to complicated or time consuming and resulting in stunning imagery. From printing a 1 million pounds worth of fake £10 notes to his stencil art seen on the streets of London he is an inspiration to many artists today and for many years to come.
Another Artists whose work stood out to me in the film was that of American Graffiti artist and Graphic Designer, Shepard Fairey. First becoming know from his OBEY sticker campaign, which he describes himself as an experiment in Phenomenology, a process of “letting things manifest themselves” causing people to question of the sticker itself and the relationship with it surroundings, something i find quite fascinating. He is also very well know for his campaign posters for Barack Obama.
Finally the main artist that is featured in this movie, isn’t really an artist at all well not at first. Intrigued by the work of street artists he began to document how they went about their work, and the dangers they faced when carrying it out. First filming his cousin Space Invader, then Shepard Fairey and eventually Banksy, who essentially kick started his career in the graffiti world when we told him he should create some of his own work and put on a small show.
However his Exhibition was not so small, brought to the attention of the art world by LA weekly, 7000 people attended on the opening night alone. He shows how easy it is to make art and that anybody can do it, even his alias Mr Brainwash dictates that he is brainwashing everyone into thinking that he is an artists when he really isn’t.
Some people could see this to b showing the art world in a bad light, as Banksy says himself;
"I used to encourage everyone I knew to make art; I don't do that so much anymore"
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