The authenticity of art work of mr brainwash aka thierry guetta

Through his artwork in the film “Exit Through the Gift Shop” Thierry Guetta cannot be regarded a valid artist as a result of his lack of individual creativity, as well as profound interconnection to his work. After watching the film “Exit Through the Gift Shop” one will be able to have a new perception concerning street artists, as well as their artwork before watching the film. According to the film, there are two categories of the artist (Shone, 2010). The first one includes the graffiti artists while the second one includes the street artist. Without being keen, one might think that the two categories of artists are the same. A real and legitimate artist need to be creative, innovative and be open to the use of ingenious techniques to come up with artwork (Daily, 2012).

By appropriating the work of photographer Morris concerning the iconic image of Sid Vicious, Guetta demonstrated that he lacked creativity and innovation which is supposed to be one of the attributes for street artists. His main purpose of appropriating Morris` famous picture was to help him fetch large sums of money at auction centres like Philips de Pury. This is contrary to the main purpose of street artists who come up with artwork that conveys different messages to various groups of people in society. The status of an iconic celebrity was at one time reserved for individuals who had legitimate talent and justified to be in the limelight. All of the artwork he presents in the film is work which has been emulated from other individuals.

Therefore, the work he presents to the audience is not unique or conspicuous in any regard, and this is why the majority of his critics believe and trust that he does not present or generate any meaning involving his work. The film helps us to understand that Thierry Guetta is assisted by a group of people to create pieces of artwork instead of relying on his talent (Harzman, 2017). This implies that Guetta does not possess any form of true or legitimate talent to be referred to as a legitimate artist. Banksy presents “Exit Through the Gift Shop” film to demonstrate that individuals like Mr Brainwash can become popular using the work of other people. Also, it is not absolute for pieces of artwork to utilize or incorporate exceptional craftsmanship, as well as an artistic touch, besides it must be considered authentic or legitimate to be notable for the exhibition.

According to Larry Shiner, he described “Artist” as something that signifies innovation, creativity, individualism, as well as a dedication to Art as an occupation. However, looking at Thierry Guetta in the film “Exit Though the Gift Shop”, we understand that he is not the creative or innovative individual who trusts in his ideas and original work (DuBois 2010). According to Banksy, art is centred on two major aspects; these are individualism, as well originality and these two attributes are what Guetta lacks in his abilities and talents. Therefore, he is not considered or regarded as a legitimate artist. On the other hand, Thierry Guetta aka Mr Brainwash, nevertheless, utilize his abrupt “success” to turn into a famous, as well as popular person without creating and conveying a substantial message via his artwork.

Since Banksy`s popularity becomes more prevalent within the film, we observe him we utilize his creativity and innovation to engage in massive, as well as more controversial artwork revealing the application of originality in his artwork (DuBois 2010). Therefore, this validates the authenticity of his work, and hence this makes him be categorized or described as a legitimate street artist. His artwork makes him earn a name and credit which he deserves completely. On the other hand, Thierry Guetta is so much convinced that he has had a substantial influence on street art yet his popularity is truly founded on fortune, as well as self-promotion. Therefore, this shows that Mr Brainwash is not a legitimate or real artist because he utilizes the talents and abilities of other local artists to promote his artwork.

This shows a high level of plagiarism, as well as appropriation which is not some of the key attributes of legitimate street artists who rely primarily on their ideas and imagination to create artwork with a meaningful message. From the film “Exit Through the Gift Shop”, we discover a significant difference that justifies the authenticity of Banksy`s artwork over Thierry Guetta`s artwork. When comparing Banksy and Thierry Guetta, the distinction in personalities and conventional existence in the street art segment are conspicuous (Schauder, 2012). Mr Brainwash depicts himself as an individual who is obsessed with popularity and will do anything to achieve the status of being famous. This demonstrates that Thierry Guetta`s artwork lacks originality and authenticity because it lacks his ideas and creativity which are the major features of a legitimate or true artist.

When Banksy met with Thierry Guetta in the film, Mr Brainwash was a filmmaker at the beginning while Banksy was a street artist. Mr Brainwash only gained interest in street art when he met with Banksy. Their meeting became the inception of Thierry Guetta`s career. This scenario implies that Mr Brainwash had no talent or ability in street art, unlike Banksy who was already a famous street art despite being an anonymous figure (Schauder, 2012). Exit Through the Gift Shop. and Buy Something! Emergence: A Journal of Undergraduate Literary Criticism and Creative Research, 3. DuBois, E. Banksy’s “Exit Through the Gift Shop”: Street Art and Our Quest for Authenticity”.  WR: Journal of the Arts & Sciences Writing Program, (3), 2010-2011. Schauder, A. Exit through the gift shop.