LONDON, Dec 25 (Reuters) No one knows what the print looks like or whether it is definitely for sale, but still they queue through the night outside a London art store to buy a copy -- such is the demand for graffiti artist Banksy.
His provocative stencils and slogans adorn countless walls from London to Bethlehem, earning the subversive Briton cult status worldwide. The fact that few people know his true identity or what he looks like only adds to the allure.
Trade in his prints is booming, with amateur dealers snapping up limited edition copies and selling them on over the Internet for big profits.
Desperate for a piece of the action, hundreds of fans and a few opportunistic dealers spent hours in the cold -- lining up outside a temporary art shop called Santa's Ghetto after hearing that 1,000 copies of a new print were due to be sold on December 18.
No formal announcement was made to publicise the event, just a mention on a chalkboard in the West End store, but word quickly spread around the artist's fan base.
''We got here at 1100 hrs last night because we wanted to be certain (of a good place in the queue),'' said Charlotte Stemman, 19, a student sitting huddled in a sleeping bag with her father, Chris, at the front of the line.
Asked why she made such an effort, Stemman said: ''His work is amazing. He is very blunt, direct and straight to the point.'' Others said the only way to buy a Banksy at a decent price was to come early to a shop sale, noting that his pictures sold out in seconds when released through an official Web site.
RATS, MONKEYS AND MONA LISA The price for Banksy's prints, which include images of rats, monkeys and the Mona Lisa with a rocket launcher, ranged from 75 to 400 pounds about three years ago, said David Cox, 34, a graphic designer who collects and deals art.
The same pictures are now being resold for between 500 and 3,000 pounds, he added, speaking from the queue.
A spray painting by the artist fetched ten times its estimate at an auction in October, selling for 62,400 pounds.
It was not always like this. Banksy started out as a teenage graffiti artist, using a spray can on walls and curbs illegally in his home city of Bristol, western England.
Over time he grew faster and more accomplished, using stencils to shape his trademark images.
His name, written in large bubble letters, has decorated railway bridges and roadsides across Britain, along with cheeky slogans like ''Designated Riot Area'' at London's Trafalgar Square and ''Mind the Crap'' under a step outside the Tate Gallery.
''He seems to tap into something that is happening now in our culture,'' said James Woroniecki, a 28-year-old comedian who was also lining up to buy a print. ''It's a very kind of powerful voice that speaks to the general feeling of discontent.'' Not everyone loves Banksy, however, including art critic Brian Sewell, who told Reuters: ''This man is nothing but a clown ... He has absolutely nothing to do with art.'' GLOBAL PRANKSTER Banksy's reputation for being anti-war, anti-capitalist and anti-state has been bolstered by stunts, such as a trip to the Palestinian side of Israel's security barrier in 2005, when he drew a number of mildly provocative images along the wall.
He also placed a blow-up figure dressed in orange Guantanamo Bay prison overalls beside a roller-coaster ride at Disneyland in the United States in September of this year.
Guardian journalist Simon Hattenstone secured an interview in July 2003 when Banksy was 28. Described as white, scruffy-casual, with a silver tooth and silver earring, Banksy said even his parents were unaware of what he did. ''They think I am a painter and decorator,'' he told the newspaper.
Despite Banksy's rise to fame, artist Tom Corby, 40, also lining up to buy a Banksy print, said there was a danger the prankster may lose his gritty appeal by becoming too mainstream.
''I think he has a balancing act to do,'' Corby said.
The shutters rolled up at Santa's Ghetto to reveal in the window a copy of a black-and-white print of children standing on a car waving the US flag -- Banksy's take on the World War Two image of flag-raising on Iwo Jima -- and the sale was on.
Over the next two hours, all 1,000 copies were sold for 100 pounds apiece, with proceeds going to a charity for children in Bangladesh. But the next day, scores of the prints were fetching up to 800 pounds on auction Web site eBay.
''There is nothing you can do about it. It's the modern day ticket tout,'' said Banksy's spokeswoman Jo Brooks.
REUTERS DKA KN1408
His provocative stencils and slogans adorn countless walls from London to Bethlehem, earning the subversive Briton cult status worldwide. The fact that few people know his true identity or what he looks like only adds to the allure.
Trade in his prints is booming, with amateur dealers snapping up limited edition copies and selling them on over the Internet for big profits.
Desperate for a piece of the action, hundreds of fans and a few opportunistic dealers spent hours in the cold -- lining up outside a temporary art shop called Santa's Ghetto after hearing that 1,000 copies of a new print were due to be sold on December 18.
No formal announcement was made to publicise the event, just a mention on a chalkboard in the West End store, but word quickly spread around the artist's fan base.
''We got here at 1100 hrs last night because we wanted to be certain (of a good place in the queue),'' said Charlotte Stemman, 19, a student sitting huddled in a sleeping bag with her father, Chris, at the front of the line.
Asked why she made such an effort, Stemman said: ''His work is amazing. He is very blunt, direct and straight to the point.'' Others said the only way to buy a Banksy at a decent price was to come early to a shop sale, noting that his pictures sold out in seconds when released through an official Web site.
RATS, MONKEYS AND MONA LISA The price for Banksy's prints, which include images of rats, monkeys and the Mona Lisa with a rocket launcher, ranged from 75 to 400 pounds about three years ago, said David Cox, 34, a graphic designer who collects and deals art.
The same pictures are now being resold for between 500 and 3,000 pounds, he added, speaking from the queue.
A spray painting by the artist fetched ten times its estimate at an auction in October, selling for 62,400 pounds.
It was not always like this. Banksy started out as a teenage graffiti artist, using a spray can on walls and curbs illegally in his home city of Bristol, western England.
Over time he grew faster and more accomplished, using stencils to shape his trademark images.
His name, written in large bubble letters, has decorated railway bridges and roadsides across Britain, along with cheeky slogans like ''Designated Riot Area'' at London's Trafalgar Square and ''Mind the Crap'' under a step outside the Tate Gallery.
''He seems to tap into something that is happening now in our culture,'' said James Woroniecki, a 28-year-old comedian who was also lining up to buy a print. ''It's a very kind of powerful voice that speaks to the general feeling of discontent.'' Not everyone loves Banksy, however, including art critic Brian Sewell, who told Reuters: ''This man is nothing but a clown ... He has absolutely nothing to do with art.'' GLOBAL PRANKSTER Banksy's reputation for being anti-war, anti-capitalist and anti-state has been bolstered by stunts, such as a trip to the Palestinian side of Israel's security barrier in 2005, when he drew a number of mildly provocative images along the wall.
He also placed a blow-up figure dressed in orange Guantanamo Bay prison overalls beside a roller-coaster ride at Disneyland in the United States in September of this year.
Guardian journalist Simon Hattenstone secured an interview in July 2003 when Banksy was 28. Described as white, scruffy-casual, with a silver tooth and silver earring, Banksy said even his parents were unaware of what he did. ''They think I am a painter and decorator,'' he told the newspaper.
Despite Banksy's rise to fame, artist Tom Corby, 40, also lining up to buy a Banksy print, said there was a danger the prankster may lose his gritty appeal by becoming too mainstream.
''I think he has a balancing act to do,'' Corby said.
The shutters rolled up at Santa's Ghetto to reveal in the window a copy of a black-and-white print of children standing on a car waving the US flag -- Banksy's take on the World War Two image of flag-raising on Iwo Jima -- and the sale was on.
Over the next two hours, all 1,000 copies were sold for 100 pounds apiece, with proceeds going to a charity for children in Bangladesh. But the next day, scores of the prints were fetching up to 800 pounds on auction Web site eBay.
''There is nothing you can do about it. It's the modern day ticket tout,'' said Banksy's spokeswoman Jo Brooks.
REUTERS DKA KN1408
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