Academy Awards

Banksy vs. Los Angeles

Charlie Burn (click for Banksy's LA gallery)

There’s some cool art popping up around LA, but you better enjoy it before it’s gone.

Mysterious graffiti artist Banksy has been hitting Hollywood and the surrounding areas over the last week or so. Charlie Brown as an arsonist (right) and an intoxicated Mickey & Minnie Mouse getting gropey on a huge billboard are just a few of the subversive pieces of work he’s been contributing to Los Angeles. Charles Schulz and Walt Disney probably wouldn’t approve of Banksy’s take but I think they’re great.

It’s not his first time playing with iconic hand drawn characters. The Simpsons hired Banksy to do the opening credits for last October’s episode, “MoneyBART”. It’s probably the darkest comedy the show has ever done. According to executive producer Al Jean’s interview with the New York Times, he claims they never met Banksy. They were just delivered storyboards through an agent.

The British artist is notoriously secretive about his true identity and has requested being able to attend this weekend’s Academy Awards show with a monkey mask. His short film Exit Through the Gift Shop was nominated for Best Documentary Feature and is considered the front runner in the category. Unfortunately his request was denied because the Academy is worried about “copycat gatecrashers”, according to /Film. To add insult to injury, his LA works are slowly being removed or defaced. Now that’s just rude.

Don’t listen to the haters, Banksy! We love you!