The Lifestyle You Ordered is Currently Out of Stock

As all art is used to convey a message able to speak to millions, in millions of different ways, political art is no different. The subject of political art tends to be one that is driven by passion. Many people want to see a change in some aspect of society that they find to be unjust. The reasoning behind this artwork tends to be quite personal, containing a lot passion and thought. Political art, however, is quite difficult. Many people in today’s society are turned off by liberal artist’s views and find them to be nuisances to society. Their graffiti and performance pieces even seem to turn many people away from the art community. Many people outside of this group see these artists as obnoxious, resulting in them not being as highly regarded by the community. Their work is therefore not judged on quality and creativity as openly, as people are blinded by their own opinions. Public art is also found to be one of the most interesting fields to study, as so much of the work is meant to do just that – make one think.

            In a world filled with billions of people, how does one make their voice heard? Especially when everyone’s views seem to conflict, how do these means not just anger people? The combination of an intriguing artist with the right audience brings the aura of political art to life. Banksy, a well renounced graffiti artist, focuses a lot of his subjects towards political art. He brings a classy, easy to approach element to this genre of art, making it widely available to a variety of audiences. His pieces are artistically executed, as one can tell he has a great deal of talent and creativity within his work.

            The piece by Banksy stating, “Sorry! The lifestyle you ordered is currently out of stock” is shown in a multitude of areas, with the framed indoor version catching my eye. The words are painted onto a natural landscape, giving the piece a more earthy feel than print. The image of the mountainous tree landscape is backed by a piece of graffiti with matching tones. The entirety of the piece is then framed in gold. The meaning of the words are pretty self explanatory- The lifestyle you ordered is currently out of stock. With the rate that we are using up our natural resources and destroying forests of over thousand years old, our resources will be out of stock. We are dwindling down the areas of the world that actually look like the natural scene in the background, and where do we think we’re going to get that back? The contrast of the mountainous landscape with the graffiti makes this realization come to life. The piece shows what a majority of our space is turning into.

As a graffiti artist, I think this piece set Banksy apart in my mind. He has a large portfolio of beautifully executed graffiti work, but still chooses to akenowledge that that is what our world is turning into, even with it contradicting his hobby. This gives the image a different feel. Knowing that the artist cares for both, gives the image a softer feel. Although is shows great contrast, there is still a respect for our lifestyle. This work overall combines the great passion for political art through a very alive subject with a soft, approachable and relatable subject.