That's How It Happened

Banksy has been under heavy attack of late. First there was the fiasco w/r/t the elephant in the room LA gallery. Then he got a thorough kicking from Charlie Brooker:

"Take his political stuff. One featured that Vietnamese girl who had her clothes napalmed off. Ho-hum, a familiar image, you think. I'll just be on my way to my 9 to 5 desk job, mindless drone that I am. Then, with an astonished lurch, you notice sly, subversive genius Banksy has stencilled Mickey Mouse and Ronald McDonald either side of her.
Wham! The message hits you like a lead bus: America ... um ... war ... er ... Disney ... and stuff. Wow. In an instant, your worldview changes forever. Your eyes are opened. Staggering away, mind blown, you flick v-signs at a Burger King on the way home. Nice one Banksy! You've shown us the truth, yeah?"

For me though, the killer blow is the news that Damian Hirst is a big collector of Banksy. In the Guardian preview of the upcoming Hirst curated show we learn that:

"He has six or seven Jeff Koons, some Richard Princes, a tranche of Banksys. He particularly likes his Banksys, including the iconic naked Vietnamese girl fleeing a napalm attack whom Banksy depicts holding hands with Mickey Mouse and Ronald McDonald."

If Banksy has any "genius", rather than just a canny sense for self-promotion, it's as a situationist. His pieces work only in the context of the street; as populist art for the mindless commuter drones. The slideshow of the new Hirst show looks great, but Banksy doesn't belong in a real gallery. He clearly sold-out long ago. Sadly though, for someone who poses as an outsider, mainstream acceptance also removes any remaining shreds of credibility.