News for hackers. Stuff that matters.
Re:I’m the Accidental Owner of a Banksy by brenschluss on Sunday October 20, 2013 @09:09PM (#6582505)
> But at the end of the day, it's still graffiti, still vandalism

It's not vandalism if the owners of the buildings are happy to have the piece.

If I scrub a brick wall clean, is it vandalism? No.

If I glue a solid pound of gold to a brick wall and the building owner takes it, is it vandalism? No.

If I have a work painted on my property that draws crowds and will probably have a "market value" of a lot of money, and I'd rather have the work have been painted than not exist, is it vandalism? No.

If I'd be happy or even would actively desire to have a Banksy piece painted on my property, is it vandalism when it does happen? No.

Re:I’m the Accidental Owner of a Banksy by iamben on Sunday October 20, 2013 @09:22PM (#6582577)
> If I scrub a brick wall clean, is it vandalism? No.

> If I'd be happy or even would actively desire to have a Banksy piece painted on my property, is it vandalism when it does happen? No.

Haha, reminds me of when Banksy would turn up in a van and overalls in the middle of the day, whitewash a wall and then stick up a 'Designated Graffiti Area' sign.. The wall would be covered a few days later... :-)

http://www.artofthestate.co.uk/photos/banksy_designated.jpg

Re:I’m the Accidental Owner of a Banksy by rolandukor on Sunday October 20, 2013 @09:16PM (#6582549)
yes, but you cannot assume that 'the owners' are all happy. Some may be but some may not be. I probably wont be. For those who are happy, fine; but for those who aren't, I would struggle to see how that wont be characterised as vandalism.
Re:I’m the Accidental Owner of a Banksy by qq66 on Sunday October 20, 2013 @09:16PM (#6582547)
If the building is in public view, local ordinances may require certain displays (obscene displays, tobacco advertisements, etc) to be covered.