Who owns the Banksy

[fullyautomatix]

And if he'd removed non-banksy graffiti - would that still be cheeky?

No, he can keep the any graffiti.

[mudskipper]

And if he'd removed non-banksy graffiti - would that still be cheeky?

[fullyautomatix]

In this case he painted on plywood that he screwed to someone else's property.

If I chain my bike to the council's fence, does it belong to them?

Are the council as keen to own all the other graffiti in the city?

Cheeky of that fatty to steal the artwork and try to make some money in the name of some boys club.

[mudskipper]

If it's painted on someone else's property then it belongs to them and not the artist, quite simple really.

In this case he painted on plywood that he screwed to someone else's property.

If I chain my bike to the council's fence, does it belong to them?

Are the council as keen to own all the other graffiti in the city?

[administrator]

So it belongs to the council then?

Yeah, that's what the beeb article is saying - the council is asking for it back now I expect Banksy will donate something to the club now - or hope he will. Nice publicity for him. Be nice to have him do something decent again, will help the value of the first set of prints that I bought for £29 each go up a bit higher as prices have drooped in recent years...

[Wanderer]

If it's painted on someone else's property then it belongs to them and not the artist, quite simple really.

So it belongs to the council then?

[TykeMerc]

If it's painted on someone else's property then it belongs to them and not the artist, quite simple really.

[vwdan]

How can that be anything but theft? I can understand it being complex to determine who it belongs to (Though, I'd suspect the council as it would probably be deemed as gifted to them), but it sure as **** doesn't belong to the guy who took it off the wall.

[MarillionFan]

I knocked that up yesterday. I call it Charm.

[mudskipper]

So another Banksy ownership row kicks off.

BBC News - Banksy work: Row erupts over Bristol street art

The beauty of Banksy is that no-one owns it - it's public art (or vandalism, depending on your viewpoint). It was taking the snobbery out of art, putting it on the street where everyone could appreciate its humour, and sticking two fingers up at the authorities who, for a long time, insisted on removing his work. Now it's becoming a commodity to be "displayed" which seems to be what the artist was rebelling against.

Although it does seem that, by painting on plywood, the artist was inviting the preservation of it. Has Banksy sold out?