a few weeks after setting up a showroom ‘for display purposes only’ in south london, banksy has now officially launched his own online store. titled ‘gross domestic product’, or ‘GDP’, the shop counts the stab vest worn by stormzy at glastonbury festival and branded T-shirts tagged by the artist among its products. other items include a clutch bag, made from a ‘genuine real life house brick’, and a rug painted to resemble the ‘diabetes riddled corpse of tony the tiger’.

banksy online store

 

 

however, the shop is not first come, first served. as many of the items for sale are limited edition pieces, a system has been set up to allow anyone to register their interest before october 28, 2019. potential buyers are allowed to pick one item only, and are prompted to answer the following tie-breaker question: ‘ ̶w̶h̶y̶ ̶  does art matter?’ an independent judge will examine the answers and select the ‘most apt and original’ applications.

 

 
 
 
 
 
View this post on Instagram
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

. I’m opening a shop. It’s called Gross Domestic Product™. It sells art, homewares and disappointment. . . . www.GrossDomesticProduct.com #Balaclavalamp

A post shared by Banksy (@banksy) on

 

 

a statement on the ‘gross domestic product’ website says that entrants will be selected at random and offered first refusal to make a purchase within seven working days. the website also states that banksy has ‘price-fixed’ the products — in most cases this is far below market value — for ‘lower income patrons’. meanwhile, ‘wealthy art collectors’ have been asked not to register at this stage. furthermore, the GDP website also contains a link to Bbay, a website billed as ‘the approved used banksy dealership’.

banksy online store
Bbay is described as ‘the approved used banksy dealership’

 

 

banksy’s shop, both physical and online, came about as a result of legal action. a flyer at the south london store states that a greeting card company is ‘trying to seize legal custody of the name banksy from the artist, who has been advised the best way to prevent this is to sell his own range of branded merchandise’. see designboom’s previous coverage of the project here, and see the GDP website for more information.

banksy gross domestic product
banksy had previously set up a showroom ‘for display purposes only’ in south london