Text: Rebel with a Spray Can 7.10.2015
00.06 ((Man 1))
"I hope that Bansky is not coming back here."
00.10 (((Over Voice-Man2))
"We sold our door without knowing that the image was done by Banksy."
00.15 ((Over Voice-Man1))
"Because he's a big problem for the Palestinians."
00.20 ((Over Voice-Man2)))
"Banksy has done more for us than any Arab"
00.23 (((Voice-Over Man1)))
"I didn't make any profit for myself at all."
00.29 O-Ton
"This whole moral - Bullshit- as they say in America - I don't buy it"
Lower: Walid Zawahrah, Taxifahrer in Betlehem 00.48 - 00.52
00.49 (((Over Voice Man 1)))
„I'm Walid Zawahrah from Bethlehem. I work driving a taxi"
01.02 (((Over Voice Man 1)))
I was the first person who saw the picture of the donkey. As a taxi driver, I drive along this road inside of Bethlehem, this main street of Bethlehem.
01.13
I call my friends from out of the city, they come here and say “Wow this is Banksy painting”
01.26
We are thinking many hours and we say: We have to cut this piece.
01.39
Walid Zawahrah is the father of 7 children -
01.42 O-Ton ??
01.47
award-winning bodybuilder and 4 time winner of Mr Palestine.
Banksy comes to his home city bringing hope with his graffitis – but also greed.
01.59
150 kilos
02.01
The horizon from Walid Zawahrah's house is concrete.
This barrier divides Israel and Palestine as well as properties and families.
For Israel: a success. The government believes that because of the wall there are less attacks against Jews.
For the Palestinians: a prison. Only those with the right papers can leave.
Meta. Source: Youtube 02.23
Banksy painted in the Palestine for the first time 10 years ago – Anonymous.
He has left his trace on the wall and on private buildings.
02.34-02.42
Walid Zawahrah came up with the idea to cut out the image of the donkey professionally – but he didn't have the money. He asked a rich friend for help.
Lower: Mike Canawati, Entrepreneur in Bethlehem 02.46
02.45 (((Over Voice Mann 1)))
"My name is Mike Canawaty und I own a shop in Bethlehem. I have nothing to do with Banksy, a part from I bought a picture from him and I used the money to renovate a church.
03.03
How much did I give to the church? Oh one mustn't speak of how much the church spends."
03.12
The wall of the house where Banksy painted the donkey and the soldier is close to his shop. A foreigner tipped him off: Banksy's picture can turn stone into gold.
Canaway shows the video of the men at work.
The taxi driver Walid Zawahra is not part of his project at all – he feels left out.
Lower: Walid Zawahrah, Taxi driver in Bethlehem 03.50
03.36
((( Man 1)))
When we wanted to cut out Banksy's pictures, we hoped that it would be able to change our lives. It wasn't about being rich, just to change something for our lives.
I was with my friend there, we eat over there at a place on the corner – the pizza. He buy from himself pizza for us. And we sit there and we speak about, we will be nice, we will have a little money from this and he said yeh.
Ah I am very sad to remember this.
04.14
Sad because his friend Mike sold the picture of the donkey without paying him his part.
04.27
Many top-dogs of American society live on the tip of Long Island in New York state.
04.34
Millions of dollars flow through here – notably money froma art, like that made at the Southhampton Art Fair.
Lower: Stephan Keszler, Art Dealer and Gallerist 04.49 - 04.54
04.47
“ My name is Stephan Keszler and I rescue Banksys, I restore his images and then sell them for lots of money.”
04.56
The Munich-born dealer is often contacted when someone believes they have spotted an original Banksy on any wall in the world.
He's Banksy's gallerist – without supposedly personally knowing him.
05.07 O-Ton -
Stephan: I'm the guy that sells this stuff
Woman: Ah and how much does it cost?
Stephan: It costs $480 000. It comes from Palestine, it was on top of a pile of manure. Four people took it down. Then we took it over, we restored it and put it up and showed it to thousands of people. So who does more for his art? Me or him? Us.
05.31
Apparently he did not buy the donkey picture in Bethleham. But Kezler transported at least two other of Banksy's works from the westbank, weighing several tons.
They are worth well over half a million dollars.
05.51
You can't tell from outside but this shop hides a goldmine.
05.58
The goods aren't valuable however the wall is. It's a Banksy original. It shows a girl being searched by a soldier.
The shopkeeper hopes that it will attract tourists so he can make a profit from it.
He constructed his souvenir shop around the work because this spring two men tried to steal the picture.
06.24
Mike Canawaty was behind this too.
Lower: Mike Canawati, Entrepeneur in Bethlehem 06.32
06.31 (((Over Voice Man 1)))
This April we tried to cut the picture out. But the police stopped us. The community forbid us to do it because they claimed that Banksys belong to Palestinian cultural heritage. But for the life of me, I can't see what Banksy has to do with it.
Lower. Essam Juha, Deputy mayor of Bethlehem 06.47
06.47 (((Over Voice Man 1)))
My name is Essam Juha ("Dschuha") I am the deputy mayor of Bethlehem.
We consider Banksy an artist who has left his mark on this country. It is a symbol of Palestinian resistance against the wall.
07.01
Because of this, Bethlehem wants the ministry of tourism to list the Banksy pictures as protected historical monuments well in any case those that remain.
07.10
Conflict in the Middle East is also damaging the tourism sector.
Bethleham is a pilgrim city.
It's only recently that visitors have started to also be interested in graffiti art on the wall and Banksys images.
07.24 (Vox-Pop Over Voice Woman)
There are all these walls here so it makes sense to be a graffiti artist right?
07.28 (Vox-Pop Over Voice Man 1)
Banksy started the resistence of the Palestinians so well.
07.33 (Vox-Pop Over Voice Man 2)
It is admirable to come to such a place and paint.
07.40 (Vox-Pop Over Voice Frau)
To put art here is a strong statement about trying to overcome these boundaries and barriers.
07.49
Banksy -
07.52
- in times of need, business has emerged.
07.57
Banksy has also spraypainted these doors.
They are in the gaza strip.
We are going to meet their owner.
08.09
Banksy named Gaza the biggest prison in the world.
The war in the past year has left behind a sea of ruins.
100.000 people are now homeless.
Over 2000 people lost their lives – over half of them were civilians.
Israel blocked reconstruction material coming in.
The UN warns that in 5 years time the Gaza strip could be uninhabitable.
Lower. Rabea Dardunni, Resident Jabalya 08.52
08.43 (((Over Voice Mann 2)))
My name is Rabia Dardunni. ("Dardune")
"08.50 (((Over Voice Mann 2)))
When the tanks came in and the bombs started falling, we fled the city.
Later, we were told that our house had been completely destroyed. Nothing is left – just the doors.
Lower. Source: Youtube 09.05
Banksy was immortalized here in February – his video went round the world.
He spray painted on Dardunni's doors a Greek god, who was crying.
Shortly after a Palestinian offered the father of 6 170 dollars for these painted doors. The owner didn't know that this would be sold for 100 times as much on the art market.
09.28
“We sold the doors because of our financial situation. We needed every penny. You understand? It was going badly for us. We didn't know Banksy or his artworks.
09.42 (((Over Voice Mann 1)))
In the westbank they sell postcards of his door.
09.48 (((Over Voice Mann 2)))
Excellent! That's good.
The doors are now with the police – and are going to court. Dardunni wants them back.
Lower. Rabea Dardunni, Inhabitant Jabalya 09.59
09.57 (((Over Voice Man 2)))
It is my life's dream that the doors travel around the world and I will go with them so I can show other people how we have suffered.
For me, it's not about the money or that the doors be put in a museum.
10.10
Banksy - he is also present in the gaza strip.
Critics accuse him of being irresponsible.
He scatters his pictures like cash money – without taking into account the trouble he is causing for those in need.
10.25
This family house was also reduced to nothing but rubble by the past year's war.
Lower Mohammed El Shinbari, Anwohner in Beit Hanoun 10.46
10.44 (((Over Voice Mann 2)))
My name is Mohammed El Shinbari. After the war I put up a tent and lived here. Some time after, a foreigner came with a local man. They painted this wall. I went up to them and asked the translator what they were painting. He said to me, this is a sign showing that we are allowed to live – like this animal has a right to his life too.
11.07
Banksy's cat plays in its cage – protected by it. As already many people have asked to buy it. But this man is waiting – for the best offer.
11.17
Here in the state of New York, Kzler the gallerist stores Banksy's works.
11.22
Amongst them is a piece of concrete from the West Bank.
Lower: Stephan Keszler, Kunsthändler und Galerist 11.35
11.33
We were contacted, once the owner had realised that it was impossible to sell it unrestored on eBay.
Then we made a deal with him. Then we flew it to London to be restored and finally it was flown over to America.
11.54
The new owner paid many hundred thousand dollars for it.
12.03
This artwork was taken from a wall to be put into another wall.
In a villa?
In a house. In a bungalow. All white. With an ocean view so that the dog can happily look out the window.
In Miami?
In Palm Beach, slightly more dignified.
Lower: Walid Zawahrah, Taxifahrer in Betlehem 12.44
12.38
This is crazy people who buy a fucking Banksy for 1 half a million or 1 million. It's better for him to support the poor people who don't have water, in Africa, in Palestine, in Gaza, everywhere, I don't care anywhere but it is for poor people. Okay they are very happy they drink champagne and think this is Banksy. When you give 100 dollars to the poor, it is better than Banksy and the piece of Banksy.
13.18
Banksy – high society is converting his critique of society into a lucrative business.
What does the artist think of this?
Our news team asked him to give his opinion.
But - surprisingly - Banksy never answered.
Credits: 13:26 - 13:34
Report: Samira Zingaro
Co-worker: Thomas von Grünigen
Camera: Matthias Gruic, Ben Hirt
Editor: Armin Rüede
Dur: 13:34
Last words: ...Banksy never answered."
Bildende: 13:35
PP: TT Graffiti man throws flowers
DP: TT Olivetrees in the sunset