“The greatest crimes in the world are not committed by people breaking the rules but by people following the rules. It's people who follow orders that drop bombs and massacre villages.”
― Banksy, quote from Wall and Piece
“A lot of mothers will do anything for their children, except let them be themselves.”
― Banksy, quote from Wall and Piece
“Think outside the box, collapse the box, and take a fucking sharp knife to it.”
― Banksy, quote from Wall and Piece
“A lot of people never use their initiative because no-one told them to.”
― Banksy, quote from Wall and Piece
“Imagine a city where graffiti wasn't illegal, a city where everybody could draw whatever they liked. Where every street was awash with a million colours and little phrases. Where standing at a bus stop was never boring. A city that felt like a party where everyone was invited, not just the estate agents and barons of big business. Imagine a city like that and stop leaning against the wall - it's wet.”
― Banksy, quote from Wall and Piece
“Once upon a time, there was a king who ruled a great and glorious nation. Favourite amongst his subjects was the court painter of whom he was very proud. Everybody agreed this wizzened old man pianted the greatest pictures in the whole kingdom and the king would spend hours each day gazing at them in wonder. However, one day a dirty and dishevelled stranger presented himself at the court claiming that in fact he was the greatest painter in the land. The indignant king decreed a competition would be held between the two artists, confident it would teach the vagabond an embarrassing lesson. Within a month they were both to produce a masterpiece that would out do the other. After thirty days of working feverishly day and night, both artists were ready. They placed their paintings, each hidden by a cloth, on easels in the great hall of the castle. As a large crowd gathered, the king ordered the cloth be pulled first from the court artist’s easel. Everyone gasped as before them was revealed a wonderful oil painting of a table set with a feast. At its centre was an ornate bowl full of exotic fruits glistening moistly in the dawn light. As the crowd gazed admiringly, a sparrow perched high up on the rafters of the hall swooped down and hungrily tried to snatch one of the grapes from the painted bowl only to hit the canvas and fall down dead with shock at the feet of the king. ’Aha!’ exclaimed the king. ’My artist has produced a painting so wonderful it has fooled nature herself, surely you must agree that he is the greatest painter who ever lived!’ But the vagabond said nothing and stared solemnly at his feet. ’Now, pull the blanket from your painting and let us see what you have for us,’ cried the king. But the tramp remained motionless and said nothing. Growing impatient, the king stepped forward and reached out to grab the blanket only to freeze in horror at the last moment. ’You see,’ said the tramp quietly, ’there is no blanket covering the painting. This is actually just a painting of a cloth covering a painting. And whereas your famous artist is content to fool nature, I’ve made the king of the whole country look like a clueless little twat.”
― Banksy, quote from Wall and Piece
“Some people become cops because they want to make the world a better place. Some people become vandals because they want to make the world a better looking place.”
― Banksy, quote from Wall and Piece
“Become good at cheating and you never need to become good at anything else.”
― Banksy, quote from Wall and Piece
“Once upon a time there was a bear and a bee who lived in a wood and were the best of friends. All summer long the bee collected nectar from morning to night while the bear lay on his back basking in the long grass. When winter came the bear realised he had nothing to eat and thought to himself 'I hope that busy little bee will share some of his honey with me.' But the bee was nowhere to be found - he had died of a stress induced coronary disease.”
― Banksy, quote from Wall and Piece
“All artists are willing to suffer for their work. But why are so few prepared to learn to draw?”
― Banksy, quote from Wall and Piece
“People either love me or they hate me, or they don't really care.”
― Banksy, quote from Wall and Piece
“Speak softly, but carry a big can of paint.”
― Banksy, quote from Wall and Piece
“People say graffiti is ugly, irresponsible and childish... but that's only if it's done properly.”
― Banksy, quote from Wall and Piece
“You owe the companies nothing. You especially don't owe them any courtesy. They have re-arranged the world to put themselves in front of you. They never asked for your permission, don't even start asking for theirs.”
― Banksy, quote from Wall and Piece
“I'd been painting rats for three years before someone said, 'That's clever. It's an anagram of art,' and I had to pretend I'd known that all along.”
― Banksy, quote from Wall and Piece
“Sometimes I feel so sick at the state of the world I can't even finish my second apple pie.”
― Banksy, quote from Wall and Piece
“I don't believe in anything. I'm just here for the violence.”
― Banksy, quote from Wall and Piece
“People who enjoy waving flags don't deserve to have one”
― Banksy, quote from Wall and Piece
“Live as a villain, die as a hero”
― Banksy, quote from Wall and Piece
“Some people represent authority without ever possessing any of their own.”
― Banksy, quote from Wall and Piece
“If you are dirty, insignificant and unloved then rats are the ultimate role model.”
― Banksy, quote from Wall and Piece
“I like to think I have the guts to stand up anonymously in a western democracy and call for things no-one else believes in - like peace and justice and freedom.”
― Banksy, quote from Wall and Piece
“When the time comes to leave, just walk away quietly and don't make any fuss.”
― Banksy, quote from Wall and Piece
“Painting something that defies the law of the land is good. Painting something that defies the law of the land and the law of gravity at the same time is ideal.”
― Banksy, quote from Wall and Piece
“Policemen and security guards wear hats with a peak that comes down low over their eyes. Apparently this is for psychological reasons. Eyebrows are very expressive and you appear a lot more authoritative if you keep them covered up. The advantage of this is that it makes a lot harder for cops to see anything more than six foot off the ground. Which is why painting rooftops and bridges is so easy.”
― Banksy, quote from Wall and Piece
“Remember crime against property is not real crime. People look at an oil painting and admire the use of brushstrokes to convey meaning. People look at a graffiti painting and admire the use of a drainpipe to gain access.”
― Banksy, quote from Wall and Piece
“If you want someone to be ignored then build a life-size bronze statue of them and stick it in the middle of town. It doesn't matter how great you were, it'll always take an unfunny drunk with climbing skills to make people notice you.”
― Banksy, quote from Wall and Piece
“Brandalism
Any advertisement in public space that gives you no choice whether you see it or not is yours. It belongs to you. It's yours to take, rearrange and re-use. Asking for permission is like asking to keep a rock someone just threw at your head.”
― Banksy, quote from Wall and Piece
“There's no way you're going to get a quote from us to use on your book cover" - Metropolitan Police Spokesperson”
― Banksy, quote from Wall and Piece
“On Painting Rats, and the Glorification of Them. They exist without permission. They are hated, hunted and persecuted. They live in quiet desperation amongst the filth. And yet they are capable of bringing entire civilizations to their knees. If you are dirty, insignificant, and unloved then rats are the ultimate role model.”
― Banksy, quote from Wall and Piece
Banksy
Born place: The United Kingdom
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“Men think about right and wrong, they have to debate it, discuss it, draw upon possibilities and statistics, laws and codes. Wolves have to know. They have to know in an instant, pure instinct, not thought, because they can never be wrong. If they're wrong, the ice they walk upon cracks, their lungs filled with cold water and crystals. If they're wrong, their brothers and sisters starve and their pups are shot as they run. If they're wrong, the rabid wolf comes back, and he always comes back, only this time they're sleeping, and they can't even put up a fight as he splits them apart.”
― Alice Hoffman, quote from Second Nature
“The world is ruled by neither justice nor morality; crime is not punished nor virtue rewarded, one is forgotten as quickly as the other. The world is ruled by power and power is obtained with money. To work is senseless, because money cannot be obtained through work, but through exploitation of others. And if we cannot exploit as much as we wish, at least let us work as little as we can. Moral duty? We believe neither in the morality of man nor in the morality of systems. [p. 168]”
― Tadeusz Borowski, quote from This Way for the Gas, Ladies and Gentlemen
“Hello," Lilly said."Movie. Of your life.You were portrayed as shy and awkward."
"I am shy and awkward," I reminded her.
"They made your grandmother all kindly and sympathetic to your plight," Lilly said."It was the grossest mischaracterization I've seen since Shakespeare in Love tried to pass off the Bard as a hottie with a six-pack and a full set of teeth.”
― Meg Cabot, quote from Princess in Waiting
“The army consists of the first infantry division and eight million replacements.”
― Sebastian Junger, quote from War
“Mustardseed grinned at Bertie. "I was never any good at geometry, but you’re stuck in a love triangle, aren’t you?"
"Shut up," she ordered even as Moth asked, "But what if there were four of them?"
"That’s a love rectangle, and five people would be a love pentagon."
"And what are six people in love?" Cobweb demanded.
Mustardseed thought it over a moment. "Manslaughter, I suppose.”
― Lisa Mantchev, quote from So Silver Bright
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Going UnderBookQuoters is a community of passionate readers who enjoy sharing the most meaningful, memorable and interesting quotes from great books. As the world communicates more and more via texts, memes and sound bytes, short but profound quotes from books have become more relevant and important. For some of us a quote becomes a mantra, a goal or a philosophy by which we live. For all of us, quotes are a great way to remember a book and to carry with us the author’s best ideas.
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