Documentary Analysis: Exit Through The Gift Shop

The use of technology has catalyzed society into an era that is increasingly interconnected yet impersonal at the same time. Despite technology’s endless list of assets, many fail to acknowledge its shortcomings when mentioning what is lost as a result of using it. Although in “Great to Watch” by Maggie Nelson, she is not afraid to share her skepticism of technology, as well as the role it plays in desensitizing individuals on a day-to-day basis. The internet is an invaluable resource to many because it is a public domain for sharing ideas, opinions, and knowledge that any and everyone can have access to. In a sense, it does not restrict what someone may see or do, and this can either be a good thing or a bad thing. The booming use of new media

Exit Through the Gift Shop is critical of how our culture values and judges artwork because of the degree to which expectations and others’ beliefs manipulate our interpretations of reality. The documentary demonstrates this phenomenon concerning art, but it also applies to all subjective experiences. Through Thierry’s opening gallery Life is Beautiful, Exit Through the Gift Shop shows how expectations and conformity manipulate our experiences.

Whether it is painting, drawing or sculpting, marginal art forms have become commodities. In addition, artists are becoming more popular for their fame rather than the content of their pieces. As artists have gone from creators to celebrities who happen to create, they are able to use their artwork to their own selfish benefit. In the Banksy film, “Exit Through the Gift Shop”, these issues are brought to life and help viewers realize that art as a commodity is not necessarily a good thing. When a marginal art form becomes commodified and a cult of celebrity emerges, the art loses its value and the genuine purpose and priorities are altered.

In order to fulfill Women & Religion’s fourth hour credit justification – I attended Spelman College’s Denim Day screening and discussion of the documentary film, “The Hunting Ground.” This free screening was sponsored by Feminist Theory: Dr. Beverly Guy Sheftall, Women, Values and Law: Dr. Cynthia Neal Spence, and the Student Commission on Gender, Discrimination, and Sexual Violence. This seminar was held on Wednesday, April 20, 2016 from seven until nine o’clock, post meridiem. It was located at the Camille Olivia Hanks Cosby, Ed.D. Academic Center at Spelman College in Atlanta, Georgia.

Exit through the gift shop is a 2010 documentary based on street art. The film was released on April 16th 2010. Directed by a notable street artist by the name of Banksy. The film tracks film maker turned street artist by the name of Thierry on his quest to success. The opening begins with many images of street artist displaying their work then; it cuts to an interview of Bansky who discusses what the film will be on. Thierry Guetta a French man was clothing store owner who picks up a camera and begins to film his everyday life. What we now know as vlogging. One day, Thierry visits his cousin who is making images similar to the monsters you would see chasing pac man and becomes engrossed in his art. Thierry begins following him around, filming his cousin putting his art work up all around the city on walls and building. Thierry then meets other artist and begins filming them the same way that he did his cousin. Thierry leaves his family to follow street artist around different cities as they try to make their art known to the public.

Through a formal analysis and investigation of the subject matter in Diane Victors, “Strip” (Image A) , “Tease” (Image B) and “Leda and the white backed vulture” (Image F) one will be able to see that, her choice of an unsettling and taboo subject matter supports the meaning behind her works. While in “The Butcher boys” (Image C), created by Jane Alexander, three monstrous figures sit on a wooden bench. These three deformed figures provoke feelings of alienation, distrust, anxiety, and curiosity while symbolising the culture of Apartheid. Whereas, Marcel Duchamp's form of art - the readymade- leaves viewers grappling with the conceptual idea instead of focusing on technical skill, in his work, “Fountain”(Image D). Benon Lutaaya uses the medium

There is no remorse in a wild animal. A sociopath is defined as someone antisocial and with no moral conscience (Dictionary.com). Sociopaths are found commonly amongst politicians and businessmen. In the film "Window of Opportunity", we are introduced to Roger, a sociopath businessman. This paper will examine the character from the film, Roger, along with two other sociopaths, Marge Schott and Vince McMahon (Joeseph 2015).

Every time my family and I go grocery shopping we end up having numerous plastic bags after unloading the food. For the most part we save these bags, keeping them underneath the sink in case we need to use them for something else later on.  However, we have done such a great job at saving these bags that they have begun to take up space. As such we have recently started throwing most of them in the garbage.  After watching the Bag It documentary in my English class I begin to realize how much plastic we actually end up throwing away just in these plastic bags, and how wasteful it is.

My parents raised me with a strong sense of kindness, independence, and work ethic that has guided me through academics and service. In my home, you succeed in academics by studying hard and doing what you can to get good grades- whether that be extra credit, tutoring, or retaking tests if the teacher allows it. At the same time, I was taught never to rely on other people to get opportunities for me or push me through- I had to want it. These values have shaped my choices both in education and extracurriculars.

The history of the Situationist movement is critical into understanding how street art can be used as a political weapon to enact social change. Like Banksy, the Situationists believed in superseding art, which abolishes the notion of art as a separate, specialized activity and transforms it into the cultural fabric of everyday life. Street art accompanies an element of surprise and culture shock because it can appear anywhere. People do not have to visit a museum or gallery to see art. Moreover, he adopts the Situationist’s methods of detournement, which is the act of taking an existing form of media and creating a new piece of art with a different message behind it. In particular, Banksy’s Les Misérables' mural is a representative form of deceptive detournement, which takes an intrinsically significant element and places it into a new context. Tear gas surrounds her and the French flag is torn to signify the values of liberty and freedom being destroyed. This is one of several Banksy’s murals that are reminiscent to the Syrian refugee

The Mexican revolutionary war brought a flow of Mexicans into America due to America’s thriving economy and Mexico’s crippling. Crops in Mexico weren’t producing enough and employment was dwindling. Faced with the struggle of survival many Mexicans looked for hope in the north. In America, life seemed to be going well. Although World War I was going on at the time and most people were overseas, this allowed for Mexicans to find many job opportunities. Especially in the making of the railways. Many Mexican agencies pushed its citizens to make the trek to America. But for this to happen Mexicans had to sign a contract, this contract also happened to grant the workers with certain rights from the Mexican constitution and it also allowed them to bring their families. This time period saw thousands of Mexicans come into America, “Between 1910 and 1930, the number of Mexican immigrants counted by the U.S. census tripled from 200,000 to 600,000.” (?) In a way the border of El Paso served as an Ellis island, but most of the time with Mexico being so close workers returned home. However in the 1930s the Great Depression hit America. Now even more than ever were Mexicans were struggling to survive but they were also faced with a greater issue, deportation. People were rounded by the thousands and shipped off to Mexico. Many of which were U.S born citizens. Over 400,000 Mexican and Mexican Americans were sent back to Mexico in hopes of this helping the great depression in other words

In this ambitious work, Sarah Thornton opens to doors to the art world and anyone is welcome to enter. The organization of Seven Days in the Art World allows the reader to easily follow Thornton as she experiences the art world from buying, selling, to creating art. Seven Days in the Art World delivers an entertaining account and perspective on the art world. This book is an excellent resource for not only students, educators, and art enthusiasts, but also those who don 't know a thing about the art world. In reviewing this book, the principal criteria included detailed information on each location Thornton visited giving any reader a sense of belonging through detail, explaining art terminology, and connecting the locations she visits one another in various ways. Although Thornton changes her tone toward the middle of the book and an artist contradicts himself making parts of the book confusing, these problems are only a minor distraction to the story being told.

On Saturday October 4th Nuit Blanche Toronto’s annual celebration of art, drew crowds of spectators to the streets of downtown to experience the awaited installations. Many pieces referenced strong messages on topics ranging from cultural differences, environmental concerns, and social issues. The night was divided into four main zones: Before Day Break, The Night Circus, The Possibility of Everything, and Performance Anxiety, each zone was located in a region of downtown Toronto. We started our night at Spadina Avenue viewing the exhibition Everything is possible and walked all the way to Fort York finishing our night with the exhibition Before Day Break. In total I was able to view 31 installations consisting of video, sculpture, and performance. The piece that stood out to me the most during the night was located in Fort York in the exhibition Before Day break. This themed exhibition consisted of 12 installation pieces that focused on the “evoking complexity of life itself” with topics ranging from social politics, human relationships, cultural diversity, and religion. The piece that moved me the

With help of Thierry Guetta, a French boutique owner turned freelance videographer, the world of graffiti and its artists are exposed in Exit through the Gift Shop. Well-known artists such as Shephard Fairey, Invader, Borf, and many others are captured by Guetta’s camcorder. Guetta captures the art chronologically from beginning to end all while avoiding law enforcement. His efforts led to following around the extremely talented, Banksy.

Banksy once said, “Art should comfort the disturbed and disturb the comfortable.” Banksy, the director of Exit Through the Gift Shop, a documentary that goes through the heart of street art strongly emphasizes that art is not about money, but rather about expression and passion. He supports his argument mainly through his strong visual and audio tactics. Visuals are much stronger than any other sense. A reoccurring factor that influences the viewer’s thoughts towards the argument is where Banksy focuses the video.