Banksy art outside of Kaze Shabu Shabu

Banksy, the controversial and elusive British graffiti artist who had a successful two-month stint with his indie flick “Exit Through The Gift Shop” at the Kendall Square Theatre, left his mark in the Boston area last May with two public art pieces unveiled in Chinatown and Central Square. 

Considered a museum-quality artist, Banksy shows up in a city, spray paints a stenciled image onto buildings and tags it with some graffiti-style writing. His work is known for poking fun at political or social issues while integrating the location into his art.

To add fuel to the Banksy mythology, the two installations were found on Essex streets in Boston and Cambridge. The downtown Boston piece called "FOLLOW YOUR DREAMS-CANCELLED"  (also known as  chimney sweep) popped up on Essex Street behind the late-night restaurant Kaze Shabu Shabu located at 1 Harrison Ave. and the other called “NO LOITRIN" mysteriously appeared  on the Essex-side brick wall outside of the Supercuts at 605 Massachusetts Ave.
 
Does the elusive artist have an affinity for Essex-named streets? Perhaps.  He’s been credited with work on Essex streets and roads in London back in 2008.

While tourists and underground art enthusiasts continue to check out the "FOLLOW YOUR DREAMS-CANCELLED” piece in Chinatown, city officials in Cambridge removed the playground-inspired “NO LOITRIN” without realizing the appeal Banksy has with the underground art scene.

Looking for a Banksy alternative in Central Square? The wall outside of Central Kitchen located at 567 Massachusetts Ave. in Cambridge, known as Modica Way paying homage to Richard B. Rico, is covered top to bottom with spray-painted additions that rotate on a daily basis from local graffiti artists.

Meanwhile, a few of the Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA)-commissioned pieces by renegade street artist Shepard Fairey remain scattered throughout the Boston area, including a defaced piece on a brick wall outside of the Tannery located at 11a Brattle Street in Harvard Square. Fairey, known for his red, white and blue "Hope" and "Change" posters that became a national symbol of the Barack Obama presidency, was sentenced to two years of probation last July after pleading guilty to three vandalism charges.

HelloMetro Tip: Central Square is a hotbed for public art in addition to the 81-foot graffiti wall next to Central Kitchen that showcases the work of internationally-known street artists from around the country. Around the corner, there's a stunning mural celebrating multi-cultural diversity called "The Potluck" by artist David Fichter next to the rear entrance of Harvest Co-operative Supermarket between Massachusetts Ave. and Bishop Allen Drive.

- by Sam Baltrusis, Boston Reporter for HelloMetro  (Click to leave a message)

Sam Baltrusis

Sam Baltrusis has worked for WHDH.com, Spike-TV, VH1, Independent News, Seventeen, Newsweek, and as a regional stringer for The New York Times. He's currently a full-time freelance editor and writer in Boston, where he's an instructor for Mediabistro.com and contributes to various regional publications including Boston Spirit Magazine. Sam also publishes a successful pop culture site, LoadedGunBoston.com, and was recently featured on WCVB-TV's "Chronicle" and Boston's NPR affiliate WBUR.