'What the hell?' Banksy disavows Moscow exhibition of his work

The street artist Banksy has disavowed any support for a popular exhibition of his work in Moscow, saying he would never charge people to see his art.

Moscow’s most controversial exhibition this summer has been an exhibition of Banksy’s graffiti works, including an original canvas of his Mona Lisa and 25 other original works that its organiser Alexander Nachkebiya had called “one of a kind”.

Billed by Moscow’s Central House of Artists as the city’s art event of the year, it has attracted 200,000 visitors in its first two months, according to Russian media reports. But it appears the entire thing took place without the artist’s knowledge.

In a screengrab of an online chat posted by the artist on Wednesday, Banksy responded to a photograph of Moscow’s exhibition hall by saying: “What the hell is that?”

Told it was an exhibition of his work and it cost £20 to get in – it actually costs closer to £10 – the artist was not amused. “I wish I could find it funny,” Banksy wrote in the conversation with an unnamed person. “What’s the opposite of LOL?”

The exhibition has the sponsorship of a number of Russia’s biggest companies, including the mobile provider MTS. The antivirus company Kaspersky was a partner for the exhibition, and a number of Russia’s most prominent news agencies were informational partners.

“You know it’s got nothing to do with me right? I don’t charge people to see my art unless there’s a fairground wheel,” Banksy wrote in the online chat. The artist is reclusive and is not represented on a number of social media sites. A representative did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

The organiser of the exhibition previously said publicly that Banksy was not involved. In an interview in June with a Russian state television broadcaster, Nachkebiya, listed online as the CEO of the IQ Art Management Corporation, said he had not spoken with Banksy or his representatives before the exhibition.

“Banksy is always against exhibitions that he doesn’t organise himself,” he said. “As to Banksy I can say that he still works on the street, he still is a rebel, he still does very relevant, very urgent work. So I think it’s not that important to him.”

The exhibition is the first time Banksy’s work has been shown in Russia. VIP tickets allow viewers to skip the line and join guided tours of the work.

Urged to put out a press release disavowing the exhibition, the artist did see some irony in going public, saying: “Hmm – not sure I’m the best person to complain about people putting up pictures without getting permission.”