Renowned street artist Banksy tags Detroit, ignites controversy

AUTOBLOG RSS feed ^ | 07-15-2010 | Jeremy Korzeniewski

[lack-of-trust]

3.5 million square feet and nobody knows who owns the old Packard Plant in Detroit.

Is graffiti still a crime when the building is falling down?

[Eric in the Ozarks]

Ask the man who owns one.

[lack-of-trust]

Photo’s at the link. (I don’t know enough code to post them, if you are going to post insturction... post the pics while you are at it.)

[BushCountry]

[wideawake]

The annoyingness of the whole Banksy phenomenon aside, I highly doubt that the owner of record is paid up on their property taxes. Unless they were operating under some tax-free deal with the city (which is possible) the city is now likely the legal owner.

[BushCountry]

The artist is stupid, there is no way he could remember trees at the location unless he was 100 years old. What would have been a much more effective tag, “I remember when America manufactured something”

[La Lydia]

If that is art, I am an aeronautical engineer. Pictures of Packard plant here.

http://www.marchandmeffre.com/detroit/index02.html

[verga]

1) Get a phot sharing account, I use photo bucket(http://photobucket.com/)

2) Click on a picture you want to post.

3) Save it to you computer (My pictures)

4) Open you photbucket account.

5) Upload to your account, and save

6) Click on picture and a list will appear, for FR use the html, and copy. 7) Open a "post comment window, and paste.

Hope that helps

[oblomov]

The statement is a contemplation on the ruins. The site was a symbol of manufacturing might for how long? 50 years? That’s not even one-third the lifespan of an oak tree.

[Krankor]

Doesn’t anyone see the irony in a graffiti street “artist” posting the message, “I remember when all this was all trees”. Isn’t this akin to the guy who kills his parents and then laments he’s an orphan?

[lack-of-trust]

BC, thanks for posting the pic.

Wideawake, the city hasn't taken the unknown owner to Sherrif’s sale, so the city doesn't own it and doesn't want to own it because then they would be responsible for fencing it in, keeping the publice safe from the “attractive nuisance”

[KosmicKitty]

Why is the kid in the painting wearing a burka??

[riri]

Posted at link: You can't eat trees, you indoctrinated moron! I remember when it was a plant that employed thousands of people who built nice lives and had normal, functional families in normal functional societies.

But, who needs those? Mad Max Land is so much nicer a place to be.

[chrisser]

I always wondered how the great cities of the ancient world could end up abandoned, unused and buried.

Now we see it happening before our very eyes.

Worse, it’s coming to a city near you if things continue on their current trajectory.

Maybe we should leave some durable plaques prominently placed in Detroit explaining what happened so future archeologists won’t have to guess.

[cripplecreek]

A while back there were some Detroit city council members who were upset that photographers were making a living by photographing the decay.

I suspect the real issue the council members had was the fact that they weren’t getting their cut.

[FrankR]

"A while back there were some Detroit city council members who were upset that photographers were making a living by photographing the decay. "

As Rush said recently (paraphrasing): "If you want to know why the cities are decaying, look to see who their leadership is, and you will see."

[ValerieTexas]

How stupid. The plant was built in 1903 — no one remembers when it was trees.

[APFel]

Is Detroit so bereft of ANYTHING of value that they now have to fight over the garbage?

APf

[KarlInOhio]

Back in May when this issue came up before, I sarcastically commented that with the decay and deurbanization of Detroit, within a generation you could carve on one of the trees growing there "I remember when this was a factory". Freeper Nateman then photoshopped this picture:

[lack-of-trust]

Brilliant response
and amazing execution!

Nateman, your image looks like it was really painted on the tree! Can you take 20 pound and 10 years off my headshot?