Banksy is a pseudonymous England-based street artist, political activist, and film director. His satirical street art combines dark humor with poignant social commentary and has garnered international acclaim. Banksy’s identity remains a mystery, adding to his allure and mystique. His art often addresses political and social issues, such as war, capitalism, and the environment. Banksy’s work typically features stenciled images with bold, subversive messages, often appearing in unexpected public spaces. Despite his secretive nature, Banksy’s impact on contemporary art and culture is undeniable, with his artworks selling for millions of dollars and his influence felt worldwide. He challenges conventional notions of art and its accessibility, using his anonymity to evade authorities and reach a broader audience. Through his thought-provoking imagery and clever interventions, Banksy continues to provoke discussion and inspire change.
Banksy Quotes
1. “If you get tired, learn to rest, not to quit.”
— Banksy
2. “Not everyone will understand your journey. That’s okay. You’re here to live your life, not to make everyone understand.”
— Banksy
3. “I don’t believe in anything. I’m just here for the violence.”
— Banksy
4. “Art should comfort the disturbed and disturb the comfortable.”
— Banksy
5. “You can win the rat race but you’re still a rat.”
— Banksy
6. “I don’t know why people are so keen to put the details of their private life in public; they forget that invisibility is a superpower.”
— Banksy
7. “I mean, they say you die twice. One time when you stop breathing and a second time, a bit later on, when somebody says your name for the last time.”
— Banksy
8. “A lot of people never use their initiative because no-one told them to.”
— Banksy
9. “Live as a villain, die as a hero.”
— Banksy
10. “If it doesn’t matter, get rid of it. If you can’t get rid of it, it matters.”
— Banksy
11. “If at first you don’t succeed, Call an airstrike.”
— Banksy
12. “Nobody knows what you feel inside unless you tell them.”
— Banksy
13. “Nothing in the world is more common than unsuccessful people with talent, leave the house before you find something worth staying in for.”
— Banksy
14. “The greatest crimes in the world are not committed by people breaking the rules but by people following the rules. It’s people who follow orders that drop bombs and massacre villages.”
— Banksy
15. “You don’t need planning permission to build castles in the sky.”
— Banksy
16. “There are four basic human needs; food, sleep, sex and revenge.”
— Banksy
17. “Become good at cheating and you never need to become good at anything else.”
— Banksy
18. “There’s nothing more dangerous than someone who wants to make the world a better place.”
— Banksy
19. “Keep your coins, I want change.”
— Banksy
20. “I originally set out to try and save the world, but now I’m not sure I like it enough.”
— Banksy
21. “I just wanna make the world a better-looking place. If you don’t like it, you can paint over it!”
— Banksy
22. “A lot of mothers will do anything for their children, except let them be themselves.”
— Banksy
23. “One Original Thought is worth 1000 Meaningless Quotes.”
— Banksy
24. “In the future, everybody will be anonymous for 15 minutes.”
— Banksy
25. “If you feel dirty, insignificant or unloved, then rats are a good role model. They exist without permission, they have no respect for the hierarchy of society, and they have sex 50 times a day.”
— Banksy
26. “We don’t need any more heroes; we just need someone to take out the recycling.”
— Banksy
27. “Be positive, patient and persistent.”
— Banksy
28. “When he time comes to leave, just walk away quietly and don’t make any fuss.”
— Banksy
29. “You’re mind is working at its best when you’re being paranoid. You explore every avenue and possibility of your situation at high speed with total clarity.”
— Banksy
30. “People who get up early in the morning cause war, death and famine.”
— Banksy
31. “If you want to say something and have people listen then you have to wear a mask. If you want to be honest then you have to live a lie.”
— Banksy
32. “Is graffiti art or vandalism? That word has a lot of negative connotations and it alienates people, so no, I don’t like to use the word ‘art’ at all.”
— Banksy
33. “Some people become cops because they want to make the world a better place. Some people become vandals because they want to make the world a better looking place.”
— Banksy
34. “Film is incredibly democratic and accessible, it’s probably the best option if you actually want to change the world, not just re-decorate it.”
— Banksy
35. “Modern art is a disaster area. Never in the field of human history has so much been used by so many to say so little.”
— Banksy
36. “Gaza is often described as ‘the world’s largest open air prison’ because no one is allowed to enter or leave. But that seems a bit unfair to prisons – they don’t have their electricity and drinking water cut off randomly almost everyday.”
— Banksy
37. “You owe the companies nothing. You especially don’t owe them any courtesy. They have re-arranged the world to put themselves in front of you. They never asked for your permission, don’t even start asking for theirs.”
— Banksy
38. “Remember crime against property is not real crime. People look at an oil painting and admire the use of brushstrokes to convey meaning. People look at a graffiti painting and admire the use of a drainpipe to gain access.”
— Banksy
39. “Fight the fighters, not their wars.”
— Banksy
40. “Speak softly, but carry a big can of paint.”
— Banksy
41. “I’ve learnt from experience that a painting isn’t finished when you put down your brush – that’s when it starts. The public reaction is what supplies meaning and value. Art comes alive in the arguments you have about it.”
— Banksy
42. “The difference between freedom and slavery is one thin line.”
— Banksy
43. “I’ve never really understood why people sleep. Wasting a third of your life and becoming vulnerable for almost 8 hours every night. Doesn’t seem very appealing to me.”
— Banksy
44. “Writing graffiti is about the most honest way you can be an artist. It takes no money to do it, you don’t need an education to understand it, and there’s no admission fee.”
— Banksy
45. “Remember – it’s always easier to get forgiveness than permission.”
— Banksy
46. “Nobody ever listened to me until they didn’t know who I was.”
— Banksy
47. “I love the way capitalism finds a place – even for its enemies.”
— Banksy
48. “If you are dirty, insignificant and unloved then rats are the ultimate role model.”
— Banksy
49. “I like to think I have the guts to stand up anonymously in a western democracy and call for things no-one else believes in – like peace and justice and freedom.”
— Banksy
50. “It doesn’t take much to be a successful artist-all you need to do is dedicate your entire life to it.”
— Banksy
51. “Painting something that defies the law of the land is good. Painting something that defies the law of the land and the law of gravity at the same time is ideal.”
— Banksy
52. “I need someone to protect me from all the measures they take in order to protect me.”
— Banksy
53. “I’d been painting rats for three years before someone said ‘that’s clever it’s an anagram of art’ and I had to pretend I’d known that all along.”
— Banksy
54. “All artists are willing to suffer for their work. But why are so few prepared to learn to draw?”
— Banksy
55. “The art world is the biggest joke going. It’s a rest home for the overprivileged, the pretentious, and the weak. And modern art is a disgrace – never have so many people used so much stuff and taken so long to say so little.”
— Banksy
56. “Sometimes the right thing to do… is the wrong thing.”
— Banksy
57. “If Michaelangelo or Leonardo Da Vinci were alive today they’d be making Avatar, not painting a chapel.”
— Banksy
58. “You’re advised not to drink the replica Arab spring water.”
— Banksy
59. “Stencils are good for two reasons; one – they’re quick; two – they annoy idiots.”
— Banksy
60. “Sometimes I feel so sick at the state of the world I can’t even finish my second apple pie.”
— Banksy
61. “Some people represent authority without ever possessing any of their own.”
— Banksy
62. “When you go to an art gallery you are simply a tourist looking at the trophy cabinet of a few millionaires.”
— Banksy
63. “Nothing is black and white, and there is no purity and there is no such thing has justice.”
— Banksy
64. “All graffiti is low-level dissent, but stencils have an extra history. They’ve been used to start revolutions and to stop wars.”
— Banksy
65. “If you want someone to be ignored then build a life-size bronze statue of them and stick it in the middle of town. It doesn’t matter how great you were, it’ll always take an unfunny drunk with climbing skills to make people notice you.”
— Banksy
66. “A recent survey or North American males found 42% were overweight, 34% were critically obese and 8% ate the survey.”
— Banksy
67. “I don’t know if street art ever really works indoors. If you domesticate an animal, it goes from being wild and free to sterile, fat and sleepy. So maybe the art should stay outside.”
— Banksy
68. “Anyone who believes in capital punishment should be shot.”
— Banksy
69. “You live in the city and all the time there are signs telling you what to do and billboards trying to sell you something.”
— Banksy
70. “I give away thousands of paintings for free.”
— Banksy
71. “A wall is a very big weapon. It’s one of the nastiest things you can hit someone with.”
— Banksy
72. “There are no exceptions to the rule that everyone thinks they’re an exception to the rules.”
— Banksy
73. “People who enjoy waving flags don’t deserve to have one.”
— Banksy
74. “I used to encourage everyone I knew to make art; I don’t do that so much anymore.”
— Banksy
75. “Graffiti is one of the few tools you have if you have almost nothing.”
— Banksy
76. “I tell myself I use art to promote dissent, but maybe I am just using dissent to promote my art. I plead not guilty to selling out. But I plead it from a bigger house than I used to live in.”
— Banksy
77. “I wanted to highlight the destruction in Gaza by posting photos on my website – but on the internet people only look at pictures of kittens.”
— Banksy
78. “There’s obviously nothing wrong with selling your art – only an idiot with a trust fund would tell you otherwise. But it’s confusing to know how far you should take it.”
— Banksy
79. “People seem to think if they dress like a revolutionary they don’t actually have to behave like one.”
— Banksy
80. “I am unable to comment on who may or may not be Banksy, but anyone described as being ‘good at drawing’ doesn’t sound like Banksy to me.”
— Banksy
81. “If you have a statue in the city centre you could go past it every day on your way to school and never even notice it, right. But as soon as someone puts a traffic cone on its head, you’ve made your own sculpture.”
— Banksy
82. “This is a big surprise I don’t agree with the concept of award ceremonies, but I’m prepared to make an exception for the ones I’m nominated for. The last time there was a naked man covered in gold paint in my house, it was me.”
— Banksy
83. “I wouldnt want to be remembered as the guy who contaminated a perfectly legitimate form of protest art with money and celebrities.”
— Banksy
84. “People either love me or they hate me, or they don’t really care.”
— Banksy
85. “It’s a very frustrated feeling you get when the only people with good photos of you work are the police department.”
— Banksy
86. “I want to live in a world created by art, not just decorated with it.”
— Banksy
87. “Today’s art has been cancelled due to police activity.”
— Banksy
88. “The one thing you can rely on is if you get disturbed halfway through a painting and it looks a bit naff, then someone will preserve that piece, remove it and a few months later it’ll be paraded round Sotheby’s by people wearing white gloves.”
— Banksy
89. “I know street art can feel increasingly like the marketing wing of an art career, so I wanted to make some art without the price tag attached. There’s no gallery show or book or film. It’s pointless. Which hopefully means something.”
— Banksy
90. “You ask a lot of little kids today what they want to be when they grow up and they say “I want to be famous.” You ask them for what reason and they don’t know or care. I think Andy Warhol got it wrong: in the future so many people are going to become famous that one day everybody will end up being anonymous for fifteen minutes.”
— Banksy
91. “As far as I can tell the only thing worth looking at in most museums of art is all the schoolgirls on daytrips with the art departments.”
— Banksy
92. “The holy grail is to spend less time making the picture than it takes people to look at it.”
— Banksy
93. “The greatest crimes in the world are not committed by people breaking the rules. It’s people who follow orders that drop bombs and massacre villages. As a precaution to never committing major acts of evil it is our solemn duty never to do what we’re told, this is the only way we can be sure.”
— Banksy
94. “All I know about what people think of my gear is what a couple of my friends tell me, and one of them always wants to borrow money, so I’m not sure how reliable he is.”
— Banksy
95. “The human race is the most stupid and unfair kind of race. A lot of the runners don’t even get decent sneakers or clean drinking water. Some runners are born with a massive head start, every possible help along the way and still the referees seem to be on their side. It’s not surprising a lot of people have given up competing altogether and gone to sit in the grandstand, eat junk and shout abuse. What the human race needs is a lot more streakers.”
— Banksy
96. “People are fond of using military terms to describe what they do. We call it bombing when we go out painting, when of course it’s more like entertaining the troops in a neutral zone, during peacetime in a country without an army.”
— Banksy
97. “This revolution is for display purposes only.”
— Banksy
