Get this man a Pedantic Pendant badge stat!
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instead of buying cans of spray paint, he could have bought bread and ham and made some sandwiches.
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Yeah, sure, but honestly, this is totally tacky art and I think Bowie would have hated it.
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Grafitti artists are few and far between. Arseholes with spraypaint cans, on the other hand, are a dime a dozen.
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It seems like people are interpreting this vandalism as disrespect towards Bowie’s memory.
But I would say the vandal showed greater respect for Bowie’s spirit than those who commissioned this boring statue ever will.
Art is dangerous. Art is war against what is.
I was always fascinated by those who transgressed the norm, who defied convention, whether in painting or in music or anything. [...] I love to see people being dangerous.- David Bowie, 1987
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Hmmm, you’re right, it’s almost like context matters. 
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Yes! Yes! I covet that badge.
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Sure, a paint can costs as much as a 4ft tall bronze statue…
Art something not mirror mumble something hammer.
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That’s because in this vandal we see a distinctive lack of the talent, hard work, and professionalism that we tend to associate with Bowie and the dangerous and transgressive artists he admired.
Such artists – including those whose pieces involve destroying or vandalising the work of others – strive to offer the public a unique experience that they don’t see every day and a statement or manifesto that’s more than just a trite and sophomoric observation.
I suspect Brecht would see both the statue piece and the vandal’s “art” shaping reality with all the efficacy of wet noodles. Forging a hammer strong enough to do what he’s discussing takes craftsmanship and talent (present in the statue at least) as well as an original and challenging creative vision (nowhere to be seen).
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I’m more disturbed with the ubiquity of surveillance cameras than that crappy statue
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If that is truly a 4 ft tall bronze statue, maybe he is just mad about being 3 1/2 feet tall. Napoleon complex perhaps.
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Hah. A vandal’s height being a matter of perspective.
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Reason #2 why we need more creative + well-planned #PublicArt, for certainly in this location any public/private memorial is going to become a magnet for public opinion, look no further than Morrison’s grave. I imagine in time this will attract all sorts of graffiti, no matter how hard gov’t tries to keep it clean, and IMO this will only add to the character of the statue. It might have been a better piece if they would have anticipated this type of responses, and left a place for them. Public Art (in this case art displayed in public, not necessarily paid for with public funds) needs to do more than look good (jury is out on this thing) it should to encourage dialog, self-expression, etc.
…and this from a guy who owns a graffiti removal business: The Gum Giant.
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And yet we don’t recognize great art until it is done, I mean yeah, this guy is no Banksy and we can point and laugh at the things he got wrong, and we can punish him because we don’t want to encourage this behaviour but it seems to me a step too far to condemn his attempting to be what he is not. A great artist with a message.
They’re not even a Wanksy
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I hear they’re about as tall, but harder to see at night than are the visigoths.
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The vandal doesn’t seem to be the one claiming this. I was responding to someone who is.
Be careful what you wish for.
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