Rodrigues 1

Elton Guilherme Rodrigues

Professor Donovan Ortega
September 2014
ENC 1130
What would be a authentic art?
An authentic art has the ability to change people's behavior and thought. Art can be since
women's pictures in billboards and advertisements using paint-marker headscarves and burqas
until paste images from space invaders by city. There are several kinds of art like crafts, dances,
poem and literature, graffiti, painting and drawing, and each has its social importance. In Veiled
Threat : The Guerrila Grafitti of Princess Hijab, written by Arwa Aburawa, Princess Hijab, an
anonymous artist, display, through human's body, her art based on the hijabism, showing a new
kind of art based on the contradiction between show women's bodies and, at the same time, cover
it with the use of the burqa. Already in Exit through the gift shop, Banksy, an anonymous street
artist, display his art on the streets like protest against the government, reporting issues in his art
such as: the use of weapons, criminalization of street arts and Great Corporations's power .
However, Mr. Brainwash, an street artist, does not make his art for create social change or
something like that, Mr. Brainwash searches valuables art, famous's pictures for making money.
Therefore, Princess Hijab and Banksy make an authentic art because it has social aspects, while
Mr. Brainwash's art just think in make money, it a inauthentic art.
Princess Hijab's artworks display women and men's bodies using garments of her culture
like critique for women's submission in the modern society. Show the human's body, covering
some parts, she makes her art to seem a "visual terrorism" (Aburawa 30) of advertising. Princess
Hijab's artwork has the ability to create gender equality because her art puts men and women on

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the same level, showing that the woman should wear the way it feels better and not just as an
capitalism's object. In one of her phrases, she said: "My work explores how something as
intimate as the human body has become as distant as a message from your corporate
sponsor."(Aburawa 30), showing both sides : what is expected of an advertisement and what she
really wants to show her art. Thus, Princess Hijab's artwork creates many changes in people's
thinking. In fact, some people believe that her works have feminist character, other anti-feminist,
a pro-Islam, anti-Islam others, so her arts has a lot of interpretations and meanings. Despite
critics because her anonymity, there are people that appreciate Princess Hijabs's arts. Therefore,
the Princess Hijab's arts can be considered an authentic art. A true anonymous artist that,
changing people's thinking with her art, has proven a legitimate and authentic art.
Banksy's street art always has a message to be transmitted to people. This is a striking
characteristic in his works. Banksy plays with the people's imagination , making them have weird
sensations when observing his art. Even though, it is a difficult to create a famous artist just
grafting some walls. Banksy's street arts has the ability to make people create questions and
thinking about what is happened here, in this city, in the government or in the world. Banksy
defends graffiti art in his works, and does not agree with the graffiti's criminalization , he makes
jokes and pranks on the subject in his works. Banksy is not considered a famous artist by chance,
his art is appreciated by many people in the world and, certainly, it can be considered an
authentic art because he can transmits his thinking for the people.
On the other hand, Mr. Brainwash's artwork does not have a message behind his works, it
just transmits a feeling as surprise, fear or happiness. Because Mr. Brainwash does not have
much physical involvement in the construction of the artwork attributed to him; he passes ideas
to his creative team and, thus, his artworks do not convey his own thought, their are just some

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beautiful drawings and paintings in frames. Mr. Brainwash's artworks is characterized by to
employ famous artistic and historic images, many of which are copyrighted, altering them in
sometimes slight, sometimes significant ways. Mr. Brainwash jokes while graffiti a Monalisa's
picture : "It's like gold, you know? Cause you spray and, How much is it? $18000 .$12000.",
making it clear that the purpose of his art is just business (Exit). In other of his phrases, he said "I
do not know how to play chess, but to me, life is a game of chess", implying that since its
beginning as a photographer until nowadays, he managed to raise his empire step by step. The
purpose Mr. Brainwash's artwork is making money. Thus, it goes without saying that Mr.
Brainwash's artwork can not be considered an authentic art.
Therefore, the real authentic art has the ability to create new habits and critical thinking.
This kind of art is easily found in Princess Hijab's art and Banksy's art. While Banksy and
Princess Hijab are two anonymous artists that make their arts for the rights of minority, mocking
the centralized power, Mr. Brainwash just thinks "How much are my works?". Put paint on a
canvas or board and impose a price can not be considered an authentic art. To be an authentic art,
the work need , mainly, transmits the artist's message to public, being it good or bad.

Works cited
Barrios, Barclay. Emerging: Contemporary Readings for Writers. 2nded. New York: Bedford,
2013. Print.
Exit Through The Gift Shop. Dir. Banksy. Revolver Entertainment (UK) and Producers
Distribution Agency (US), 2010. Film.