Barely Legal (Banksy)

Barely Legal was a show by graffiti artist Banksy, held in an industrial warehouse in Los Angeles, California, in 2006.[1] The free show was held over the weekend of 16 September 2006.

Part of the exhibition was a 37-year-old Indian elephant that was painted to match the wallpaper of the room in which it was placed. The show was meant to address important issues such as poverty, which is ignored by most people;[2] the animal was a literal representation of the "elephant in the room".

While in Los Angeles, the artist also targeted Disneyland in Anaheim, where he disposed of a figure dressed up as a prisoner from the Guantanamo Bay detention camp behind on one of the rides, intending to draw attention to the situation in the detention camp,[3] where several months earlier three inmates had committed suicide. The figure was taken down after approximately 90 minutes.[3] A video of the artist placing the figure in the theme park could also be seen at the exhibition.[2]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Wyatt, Edward (16 September 2006). "In the Land of Beautiful People, an Artist Without a Face". The New York Times. Retrieved 17 December 2015.
  2. ^ a b "'Guerrilla artist' Banksy hits LA". BBC News. 14 September 2006. Retrieved 14 March 2016.
  3. ^ a b "Artist Banksy targets Disneyland". BBC News. 11 September 2006. Retrieved 14 March 2016.