Graffiti artist's influence crosses the pond

Now it seems that Banksy's influence has crossed over into America, more specifically, into Burlingame High School. The stencil showed two black stick figures with one pointing a gun to the other's head, with the words CAPITALISM written at the top. The stencil was drawn on the ground between the portables and the tennis courts for a few days, before it was painted over with gray spray paint.

Somehow, the word has gotten out that this is a work like Banksy's.

In London, Banksy has churned out a lot of different stencils: rats dumping nuclear waste, police officers walking poodles, Samuel L. Jackson and John Travolta in "Pulp Fiction" firing bananas instead of guns, a monkey wearing a sign that says, "Laugh now, but one day we'll be in charge," and little girls holding missiles like stuffed animals. Sometimes his stencils are just sentences - statements, jokes and ironies. His signature and words are all in the same, full, bold font. At traditional landmarks, he often writes "This is not a photo opportunity," or on establishment buildings, "By Order National Highways Agency This Wall Is A Designated Graffiti Area."

His Web site (banksy.co.uk) starts out with a flash animation of his signature and the sentence "The anger management is not working" and shows a picture of someone working on a stencil at night, with only the light of a single street lamp. It could be Banksy. Maybe not. His/her back is turned to us.

The Web site has pictures of stencils both indoors and outdoors, different newspaper clippings about Banksy, links to different graffiti-stencil Web sites and a do-it-yourself guide to cutting stencils, with advice like "Spray the paint sparingly onto the stencil from a distance of 8 inches," or "If you're in a place with lots of security cameras wear a hood, move around the city quickly and act like a sad old drunk if you attract attention."

However, one of the most memorable and moving parts was Banksy's Manifesto. It is a diary entry from a British lieutenant who was among the first to liberate the Bergen-Belsen women-only Nazi death camp. He talked about how lipstick gave the women the will to live - how it was probably one of the best things the soldiers did when they liberated that camp. At the top of the manifesto is a Banksy stencil of the Jewish women at Belsen, all with fluorescent lipstick - a very poignant image.

Another interesting thing that Banksy said on his Web site was, "The time of getting fame for your name on its own is over. Artwork that is only about wanting to be famous will never make you famous. Any fame is a bi-product of making something that means something."

On one hand, this kind of graffiti is vandalism. And it's illegal. On the other hand, it's a different kind of a vandalism - a beautiful kind, one that inspires people to form their own opinions. Because that's exactly what his stencil graffiti is trying to do - make you think.

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If you're Asian, a junior or senior in high school and interested in gaining first-hand knowledge of the legislative process, participating in a mock legislature, developing leadership and public speaking skills, and meeting Asian and Pacific Islanders involved in government, you should check out the Asian Pacific Youth Leadership Conference. The conference is supposed to empower participants with confidence and a desire to make a difference in their communities.

The conference will be held from March 17-20 and everyone interested must apply. If you are selected to attend, all expenses will be paid.

Applications must be e-mailed or postmarked by Nov. 8.

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Scholarship Savvy: Interested in making flash movies and changing the world? Citizens for Global Solutions is holding a contest for students, artists, young graphic designers and human rights activists who would want to create a short flash movie that can inspire, amuse and activate people out there who believe that a better world is possible.

Participants must show a global problem or problems and give a global solution that U.S. Leaders and/or American citizens should take part in.

The first place prize is $1000, second place is $500, third place is $250. For more info, visit http://advocacy.globalsolutions.org

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Vibe-ing Good Times: Saturday band night featuring The Muckruckers, Inverness, Mark B, Shafter and Wasco, starting at 7 p.m. Admission is $5. The Vibe is located at 650 Shell Blvd., Foster City. Call 286-3254 for more information.

Margot Leong is a senior at Menlo School. Her column appears in the Friday edition of the Daily Journal. She can be reached at margot.leong@gmail.com.