Banksy's Latest Is a Nazi Officer Taking in the View in Gramercy (And It's Up for Auction)
We're really not sure what to make of Banksy's latest installment in "Better Out Than In." His website describes it as "The banality of the banality of evil, Oil on oil on canvas, 2013" and "a thrift store painting vandalized then re-donated to the thrift store." What we see is a beautiful pastoral landscape, except there's an SS officer on a bench in the foreground.
Banksyny.com
What exactly is he getting at with "the banality of the banality of evil"? Doing loop-de-loops around Hannah Arendt's theoretical reckoning of the Nazis' rise to power isn't really how we want to spend our afternoon, but we're guessing it has something to do with Banksy not really caring much about what he's actually saying.
The piece is hanging in the window display of Housing Works, a thrift shop, bookstore, and HIV/AIDS and homelessness advocacy organization with multiple locations across the city. Judging by the clue on Banksy's site, the piece is at Housing Works' Gramercy location.
See Also: Exclusive Interview With Banksy and More
Housing Works director of public relations Rebecca Edmondson tells Runnin' Scared that the piece was donated anonymously to the store, but that it has been authenticated as Banksy's. For all of you who missed out on getting an original Banksy on Central Park earlier this month, Housing Works will open bidding on the piece shortly.
"One hundred percent of the proceeds from the auction will go to Homeless New Yorkers living with and effected by HIV/AIDS," says Edmondson.
Update: The piece will go up for auction tonight at an unspecified time on Bidding For Good, says Housing Works. This ain't no penny-ante affair, folks: Bids will start at a whopping $76,000. Up-to-the-minute updates on the auction will be available at Housing Works' Twitter, @Hwthrifts.
Update, 6:15 p.m.: The auction is now live and runs until October 31 at 8 p.m. The current bid stands at $85,200.
Click through for our tracker of Banksy's pieces and a map point to the latest one.
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