BAD NEWS…
The Banksy painting was removed from it’s original location at 410 S. La Brea Ave.
Now, In this exclusive video sent to JetSet Graffiti anonymously by “a friend of the artist”, the removal process has been captured. The million dollar question we’re about to answer? Who did it?
JetSet Graffiti has confirmed through a business partner of Banksy’s that it was the infamous Doug Christmas of Ace Gallery in Los Angeles that organized the removal and impending unauthorized sale of the artwork.
Famous for treating his bills as if they didn’t exist; Since 1976, Christmas has been sued 55 times by artists, other dealers and art collectors, according to a profile in 2009 in the LA Weekly.
According to the source of the anonymous video, “I asked the workers what they were doing with it, and they said they were hired to remove it, and that it would go into a ‘big collection of art’. We all know that this piece is currently being offered for sale through Ace.”
Further evidence gathered on Google Maps also indicated that Doug Christmas likely played a part in the heist. The installation site at 410 S. La Brea Ave. yielded the following picture at street level:
The phone number connects to Ace Gallery, Los Angeles. Gallery Owner Doug Christmas confirmed via phone to Daniel Lahoda that the piece was in his gallerie’s possession, however Mr. Christmas has “not decided how much to sell it for, or even if we are going to sell it at all.”
Our take on this mess? Glad you asked:
“Do NOT support this sale; the artist never confirmed the work was his, and the piece is now considered counterfeit. Look, if these wealthy gallerists and collectors are going to try and use an artist’s hard work to make money, they will do it on his terms, not off his back. It makes sense for the artist to distance himself from the work now. Banksy never confirmed it was his to begin with, so Ace Gallery and every other greedy art-star fucker can piss off. The irony of it all is that the boys who play the “art is exclusive” BS game so well are now being pushed out by their own rules of engagement so they have to resort to “stealing” the work. They can own the art all they want; but they’ll never own the street.” -Daniel Lahoda, Owner, www.jetsetgraffiti.com
