Banksy: The Man behind the Wall: Revised and Illustrated Edition

I'm positive this is by far, the best book written about the life of Banksy to date. A little about where I'm coming from: I wouldn't say I'm an obsessed Banksy fan or collector of his work but I have read three other books about Banksy (You are an Acceptable Level of Threat, Seven Years with Banksy, The Art of Banksy: A Visual Protest), as well as the four books he has published himself. NOTE: This is not a coffee table book with only pictures of his work. It definitely has a lot of pictures and uses them wisely when they relate to the text but the majority of the book is text.This is a book about who Banksy is, where he grew up, what he's like as a person and an artist, how his work and scale progressed from Bristol to all over the world, and the team of people that surround him. Will did a really, really phenomenal job reaching out to basically anyone who has been in contact with Banksy and actually convinced a few to talk to him. Will obviously doesn't reveal the artist's name, although he mentions where to find that information on the internet if that's why you're interested in the book. I'm not sure what the 2013 version was like, but this 2021 version is definitely the way to go. So much has happened in the 9 years between and Will covers all that in the book. It was jaw-dropping to see how little Banksy sells prints or artwork for and then what resellers are getting for them. I don't know why it never really occurred to me that Banksy sees practically none of the money that his art fetches because it's all private collectors selling it. The Sources and Bibliography sections at the end of the book are stunning. The amount of articles, books, and interviews read, videos watched, websites and forums Will visited was staggering.Most importantly, Will has written as far as I know, the most unbiased book on Banksy to date. None of the other books I mentioned in my intro offered a single negative critique of the artist, only reverence (maybe one of them mentioned the whole Robbo affair actually). Will is obviously a fan and in fact mentions an interesting story about going to pick up a Banksy print himself, but he isn't afraid to point out ironies surrounding Banksy as well as other controversies and hypocrisies.I'm trying to think of what I didn't like about the book but honestly I can't come up with much. There were a couple typos...I would suggest opening the preview on Amazon in order to read the table of contents, the first few chapters, and the Sources and Bibliography sections I was talking about. That will tell you if it is a good fit for you.Simply put, if you are interested in learning about Banksy, this is the book for you.

This is artist biography and some of is work.

Giving 5 stars BC the seller shipped the item quickly and the condition was as described, new. The book itself isn't bad. It wasn't what I expected. If I had to rate the book itself, I'd give it 3 stars due to the authors writing style. I'm happy with the purchase and I feel I got a great deal. The author isn't trrrible but certainly not exceptional. In all, there are certainly many interesting points and some of the information I found quite interesting. I loved the design and the pages are all black on the edges which I thought was really cool. I'd buy it again.

Bought as gift for son. Arrived in excellent condition.

A fascinating if unauthorized bio of Banksy. Raises many interesting issues regarding the value of art and the power of social media. If you have ever wondered about graffiti writers, this book takes you into their world.

Nice study of the Banksy phenomenon, great introduction to the graffity world, great links with the actuality.I want to buy a banksy now... ;)

Thorough and fair. Wills Ellsworth Jones was enthusiastic about art generally and Banksy in particular but clearly not beholden to him.

Excellent condition! Extremely happy with my purchasr and time it took to get my book. The book was brand new and was in better shape than described.

If you are a BANKSY fan this is a BOOK to read.It is an enthralling look into his classic way of life,and,includes many stories of the other artists he has worked with.

Good quality of the paper and the images, but the book came a little bit damaged in the corners.

My son enjoyed this book

Good

Fabulous book thank you