When Crime Pays … or Graffiti for Fun & Profit !

You may have realized I’m very interested in graffiti … and that’s for many reasons.

But, what I didn’t realize was that graffiti can make you money too.

Unless you’ve lived in London you probably have never heard of Bansky.  But, Banksy is a secretive London graffiti-ist who has transcended the criminal tag and become an artist. 

His conventional artwork (signed and on paper) has been selling for high prices through a gallery.  Last year Brad Pitt and Angela Jolie piad $200,000 for one of his prints.

What’s more interesting is that some of his graffiti has also been sold.

A picture of an artist in old-fashioned clothes spray-painted on a wall in London's Portobello Road, Notting Hill sold on eBay last year for £208,100 ($452,950) after attracting 69 bids. The buyer must pay for a replacement wall if they want to take the purchase home.  Luti Fagbenle, who owns the property on which the graffiti is sprayed, said he sold the image because "I can't really justify owning a piece of art worth as much as it is".

If you are in Melbourne you can see some of Banksy’s work hidden behind two rubbish bins at the entrance to a narrow city lane.  It’s a ghostly image of a man wearing a heavy coat and an old-fashioned diving helmet and was painted on the wall about five years ago during his only known visit to Australia. But since it’s painted on the wall of a heritage-listed building it’s not likely to be sold.

If you want to see more of Banky’s work check out his website.

Francesco …