We don’t get sentimental when it comes to street art getting defaced, no matter who it is. After all, the genre is born out of graffiti, an illegal art form that has a long history of intense competition and writers going over other writers. Having said that, it seems like New York’s taggers (and unwitting property owners) are in some sort of contrived race to buff or deface #BanksyNY pieces within hours of them going up.
Case in point: OMAR NYC aka SWATCH. Here’s a graffiti writer who doesn’t even write anymore except when it comes to dissing Banksy, making him the world’s biggest dickrider. This afternoon, he showed up to Red Hook a little before 2pm with a friend who was allegedly posing as a Daily News reporter, according to photographer Alma Aguilera, who witnessed the tagging. “About eight people were there,” says Aguilera to ANIMAL. “The whole time he and his buddy were recording. His friend was interviewing people. His friend was posing as a newscaster.”
Then, he pulled out a can of spray paint, tagged his name next to the balloon, and scribbled on it as well. “Peopled booed him,” says Aguilera. This of course isn’t the first time that OMAR has ragged Banksy, he has a history of using the street artist to get what little of his name is left out there back on the street.
But hey, if it wasn’t him, there would probably be another writer seeking the Banksy bump. So… c’est la vie.
(Photos: Alma Aguilera)
