Over the past ten years, street artists have become more accepted into the art world. Their commentary on everyday life has brought a humorous light on our mundane lives and have influenced the way we view global events. One street artist in particular, Banksy, has inspired millions with his talent and has reimagined what is considered art.
Banksy, originally from Bristol, England, is famous for his street art that combines dark humor and satire. Some of his works include, Son of a Migrant, Slave Labour, Crayola Shooter, and Dorothy Police Search. His identity is a mystery, making his art mystique and influencial. Although most of his work is located in England, there are some pieces in the U.S., specifically in Los Angeles. One of his most famous pieces, Girl with the Pierced Eardrum, is a parody of Johannes Vermeers’, Girl with a Pearl Earring. Stenciled on the side of a recording studio, Banksy brings the past to the present adding his own twist.
Girl with a Pearl Earring, oil on canvas, is speculated to have been created around 1665. Painted during the Baroque movement in the Netherlands, the young girl is often referred to as the Mona Lisa of the North. Vermeer, a dutch painter, manipulates light and ultramarine to create a simple, dramatic image. The light is coming from the upper left, indicating the girl is by a window or another source of light. A central area of light became very prominent during the Baroque movement which Vermeer successfully took advantage of. The girl in this painting is believed to be Vermeer’s oldest daughter, Maria, who would have been about twelve. Although it is not known for sure, it is understood that she is the subject of several other paintings as well. Vermeer has positioned her so that the viewer believes they have caught her attention, making her turn her head. It is also believed that the reason Vermeer paints women in an encouraging, yet still manner is due to his traditional, familial beliefs.
Banksy’s mural is a stenciled version of Vermeer’s masterpiece, only replacing the pearl earring with the building’s alarm box. Art has done so much throughout history from the use of stained glass in the Romanesque period to the response of social and economic class that was the Rococo Movement. From Van Gogh we received Starry Night, Las Meninas from Diego Velázquez, and The Birth of Venus from Sandro Botticelli. Art has been used to express every emotion and depict hundreds of global events. In Banksy’s work, he ironically uses the alarm box to indicate that art should be alarming. Today, there aren’t as many people who know about Vermeer’s work as there was when his paintings were created. In a lot of ways, past works of art have been forgotten. Banksy, famous for his animosity and creativity, has brought the girl and, although not her pearl, earring back. Without understanding the history, purpose, and effect art has, we lack knowledge of cultures and ideas. That in itself is alarming, where Banksy makes his point.
By recreating a 17th century masterpiece, Banksy forces the viewer to go back in time and see how far art and society has come. In Vermeer’s time, graffiti would have never been considered art whereas in today’s society it is one of the most popular. One can only wonder what will be considered art in another three hundred years. Although the two pieces are different in mediums, time, and place, they both serve a similar purpose- to allow viewers to see the ordinary in a different way. For Vermeer, it was adding light and manipulating color. For Banksy, it was reassigning props and manipulation of place.
