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[UPDATE] Photos: Latest Banksy Is Definitely In Woodside, Queens
By
Jen Chung
Published Oct 14, 2013
Modified Oct 14, 2013
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By
Jen Chung
Published Oct 14, 2013
Modified Oct 14, 2013
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A tipster in Queens sent us this photograph of what she believes to be the newest Banksy piece. Heidi Trenholm said this morning that the stencil is in Woodside, at 69th Street and 38th Avenue, "I'm pretty sure I saw him leaving and it still smells like fresh paint."
When asked to describe the artist, she said, "I saw a man wearing construction gear loading something into a rental truck as I was walking to the train, which I thought was a little odd because there wasn't any construction going on there. I looked at the wall and immediately recognized it, so I looked at the driver and he was a middle aged white man wearing glasses. He smiled and nodded and drove away pretty quickly."
Gothamist's own Jake Dobkin, Native New Yorker and street art documentarian, declares, "It's definitely a Banksy; you can recognize it from three things: The hand-style on the quote, the quality of the stencil, and the presence of the blue tarp. Also it's got that certain stupid Banksy je ne sais quoi. Like it's a joke about graffiti. He loves meta."
Everyone: BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR BIG BLUE TARPS. Because that's more of a giveaway than stealth street vendor pop-ups in Central Park.
Update: Photographer Nic Garcia is there and says the blue tarp is gone. No one was there at 69th Street and 39th Avenue initially and then four people showed up. Also, he thinks, "It's gotta be" Banksy. Plus, the "The letters are oil stick and still wet!"
Update 2: Banksy confirmed the piece. On his website, he wrote, "Some people criticize me for using sources that are a bit low brow (this quote is from 'Gladiator') but you know what? 'I'm just going to use that hostility to make me stronger, not weaker' as Kelly Rowland said on the X Factor."
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banksy ny
better out than in
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Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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