A long-lost painting by Banksy has resurfaced in a swanky art gallery in Tel Aviv, an hour’s drive and a world away from the concrete wall in the occupied West Bank where it was initially sprayed.
The relocation of the piece — which depicts a slingshot-toting rat — raises questions about the removal of artwork from occupied territory from where they were intended to be displayed.
The painting initially appeared near the separation barrier in the occupied West Bank city of Bethlehem and was one of several works created in secret by the British graffiti artist around 2007. They employed Banksy’s trademark absurdist and dystopian imagery to protest against Israel’s decades-long occupation of territories the Palestinians want for a future state.
Now, it resides at the Urban Gallery in the heart of the financial district in Tel Aviv, surrounded by glass and steel skyscrapers.
“This is the story of David and Goliath,” said Koby Abergel, an Israeli art dealer who purchased the painting, without elaborating on the analogy. He said the gallery was simply displaying the work, leaving its interpretation to others.
Associated Press could not independently confirm the authenticity of the piece, but Abergel said the cracks and scrapes in the concrete serve as “a fingerprint”, which proves it is the same piece on the artist’s website.
The 70-kilometre journey it made from the West Bank to Tel Aviv is shrouded in secrecy. The 408-kilogram concrete slab would have had to pass through Israel’s serpentine barrier and at least one military checkpoint — daily features of Palestinian life and targets of Banksy’s biting satire.
Abergel, who is a partner with the Tel Aviv gallery, said he bought the concrete slab from a Palestinian associate in Bethlehem. He declined to disclose the sum he paid or identify the seller, but insisted on the deal’s legality.
The graffiti artwork was spray-painted onto a concrete block, which was part of an abandoned Israeli army position in Bethlehem, next to a soaring concrete section of the separation barrier.
Palestinian Tourism Ministry
Some time later, the painting was itself subjected to graffiti by someone who obscured the painting and scrawled “RIP Bansky Rat” on the block. Palestinian residents cut out the painting and kept it in private residences until earlier this year, Abergel said.
He said the relocation involved delicate negotiations with his Palestinian associate and careful restoration to remove the acrylic paint sprayed over Banksy’s work. The massive block was then enclosed in a steel frame so it could be lifted onto a flatbed truck and rolled through a checkpoint, until it arrived in Tel Aviv in the middle of the night.
It was not possible to independently confirm his account of its journey.
The piece now stands on an ornately patterned tile floor, surrounded by other contemporary art. Baruch Kashkash, the gallery’s owner, said the roughly two-square-metre block was so heavy it had to be brought inside by a crane and could barely be moved from the doorway.
Israel controls all access to the West Bank, and Palestinians require Israeli permits to travel in or out and to import and export goods.
Abergel told AP the artwork’s move was not coordinated with the Israeli military and that his Palestinian associates, whom he declined to name, were responsible for moving it into Israel and crossing through military checkpoints. He said he has no plans to sell the piece.
Scrolled through the gallery for pictures of Banksy's Walled Off Hotel guesthouse in Bethlehem
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British artist Banksy's Walled-Off Hotel facing Israel's controversial separation wall in the occupied West Bank town of Bethlehem. AFP -
A new Christmas-themed artwork dubbed the "Scar of Bethlehem" by secretive British artist Banksy is displayed at his Walled-Off Hotel in Bethlehem in the occupied West Bank. AFP -
Manager of the Walled-Off Hotel Wissam Salsaa presents a new Christmas-themed artwork dubbed the "Scar of Bethlehem". AFP -
Manager of the Walled-Off Hotel Wissam Salsaa presents a new Christmas-themed artwork dubbed the "Scar of Bethlehem". AFP -
An illustration by street artist Banksy is displayed in his Walled-Off hotel in the Israeli occupied West Bank town of Bethlehem on December 20, 2019. AFP -
A Banksy wall painting showing an Israeli border police officer and a Palestinian in a pillow fight decorates one of the rooms of The Walled-Off Hotel in the West Bank city of Bethlehem. AP, File -
A picture taken from street artist Banksy's Walled-Off hotel shows Israel's controversial separation wall in the occupied West Bank town of Bethlehem. AFP -
An artwork by street artist Banksy is displayed in his Walled-Off hotel in the Israeli occupied West Bank town of Bethlehem on December 20, 2019. / AFP / AHMAD GHARABLI -
Illustrations by street artist Banksy are pictured in his Walled-Off hotel in the Israeli occupied West Bank town of Bethlehem on December 20, 2019. AFP -
An illustration by street artist Banksy is displayed in his Walled-Off hotel in the Israeli occupied West Bank town of Bethlehem. AFP -
Illustrations by street artist Banksy are displayed in his Walled-Off hotel in the Israeli occupied West Bank town of Bethlehem. AFP
According to the international treaty governing cultural property to which Israel is a signatory, occupying powers must prevent the removal of cultural property from occupied territories. It remains unclear exactly how the 1954 Hague Convention would apply in this instance.
“This is theft of the property of the Palestinian people,” said Jeries Qumsieh, a spokesman for the Palestinian Tourism Ministry. “These were paintings by an international artist for Bethlehem, for Palestine, and for visitors to Bethlehem and Palestine. So transferring them, manipulating them and stealing them is definitely an illegal act.”
The Israeli military and the Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories, the Israeli Defense Ministry body responsible for coordinating civilian affairs with the Palestinians, said they had no knowledge of the artwork or its relocation.
Banksy has created numerous artworks in the West Bank and Gaza Strip in recent years, including one depicting a girl conducting a body search on an Israeli soldier, another showing a dove wearing a flak jacket and a masked protester hurling a bouquet of flowers. He also designed the Walled Off Hotel guesthouse in Bethlehem, which is filled with his artwork.
A representative for Banksy did not respond to requests for comment by AP.
This is not the first time the street artist’s work has been lifted from the West Bank. In 2008, two other paintings — Wet Dog and Stop and Search — were removed from the walls of a bus shelter and butcher shop in Bethlehem. They were eventually bought by galleries in the US and the UK where they were exhibited in 2011.
Abergel says it’s up to viewers to draw their own conclusions about the artwork and its implications.
“We brought it to the main street of Tel Aviv to be shown to the audience and to show his messages,” said Abergel. “He should be happy with it.”
Banksy in Palestine: A look at the street artist's work in Gaza and the West Bank — in pictures
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A graffiti by British street artist Banksy showing a dove with a bulletproof vest is seen in the Israeli occupied West Bank town of Bethlehem on March 15, 2017. AFP -
Two men are sitting in front of a famous graffiti of British street artist Banksy, painted on a wall of a gas station in the West Bank city of Bethlehem on December 16, 2015. AFP -
A Palestinian boy walks past a Banksy mural of children using an Israeli army watch tower as a swing ride in Beit Hanoun, Gaza, as seen on April 10, 2015. EPA -
'The Flower Thrower', arguably one of the most famous works by Banksy, depicts a masked Palestinian man throwing a bouquet of flowers, seen in Bethlehem on December 12, 2018. EPA -
Palestinians ride a motorcycle past words thought to be painted by British street artist Banksy on the wall of destroyed homes in Beit Hanoun town in northern Gaza. Pictured on April 10, 2015. EPA -
A work by Banksy, seen in Bethlehem in December 2007. The stencilled work has been interpreted to depict a small girl in a dress, thought to be Palestinian, frisking an Israeli soldier. EPA -
An armed Palestinian policeman stands before 'The Armoured Dove', a graffiti painting by Banksy depicting a peace dove wearing a flak jacket with crosshairs on the bird's chest, painted on a wall at the entrance to the West Bank city of Bethlehem, as photographed on January 6, 2019. EPA -
Banksy opened The Walled Off Hotel in Bethlehem in 2017. EPA -
A view through a window inside The Walled Off Hotel. EPA -
A room at The Walled Off Hotel in Bethlehem with a work by Bansky, depicting an Israeli soldier and a Palestinian protester during a pillow fight. EPA -
A graffiti mural of a kitten by Banksy, on the wall of the Al Shimbari family's home, which was damaged during the 2014 conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Beit Hanoun in northern Gaza. Seen on February 27, 2015. EPA -
'Scar of Bethlehem' is a modified nativity set that Banksy created for the Walled Off Hotel in Bethlehem in December 2019 . EPA -
A rumoured work by Banksy, depicting a camel with human figures climbing up and down its legs. Seen on December 4, 2007. EPA -
A stencilled work by Banksy, showing an Israeli soldier asking a donkey for its identity card, seen on December 4, 2006. EPA -
A mural by Banksy in Beit Hanoun, as seen in February 2015, depicts a bent figure wearing a head scarf, painted on the door of a home destroyed by the Israeli military in 2014. EPA -
Graffiti thought to be by Banksy, as seen in December 2007 in Bethlehem. The white donkey has what appears to be a small Palestinian village on its bac,k and the black donkey carries on its back what appears to be a modern Israeli town. The work was not signed by Banksy. EPA -
Banksy street art on the entrance to the Aida refugee camp in Bethlehem, as seen on April 18, 2019. EPA -
This stencil of a tank being towed away on the wall of a house on a main street in Bethlehem is credited to Banksy, but not signed, as seen December 4, 2007. EPA
