Born Thierry Guetta in France, 1966, the artist known as Mr Brainwash is one of the most easily recognisable names in the contemporary art market. His distinctive use of pop culture iconography and canonical artworks, combined with a bright and energetic graffiti style, has seen him rise to incredible heights of fame since his artistic debut.
This speed-run to fame was in large part due to the artist’s connection with Banksy, whose 2010 documentary Exit Through the Gift Shop featured Mr Brainwash’s work as he began to take an active role in the evolving street art movement. Mr Brainwash’s debut show, Life is Beautiful, was launched the same year, with sales that far exceeded their estimates, setting up a trend of buying Mr Brainwash art that would only grow as his audience expanded.
Mr Brainwash is known for his combination of visual elements, which often include images of copyrighted works and tributes to other artists such Keith Haring, Andy Warhol, Jean-Michel Basquiat, and Banksy himself. He often layers images of celebrity portraits, or icons such as Warhol’s soup cans, with sections of graffiti and splattered paint, creating a visual suggestion that they have all been added to the same graffitied wall. In these images, it is easy to see the artist’s intention to “bring art to the masses,” as well as provoking questions about how different artworks are valued by society.
The association between Mr Brainwash and Banksy has given rise to speculation that the artists are in fact the same person, and that “Mr Brainwash” is another Banksy prank to poke fun at the contemporary art market. The inclusion of Mr Brainwash in Exit Through the Gift Shop, as well as his consistent use of Banksy’s artworks such as Girl With Balloon and Turf War have been cited to support these claims. However, Banksy has continually stated that this is not the case.
One element that sets Mr Brainwash apart from Banksy, and many others in the street art world, is his energetic positivity. His signature phrase “Life is Beautiful” truly seems to be a mantra that he lives by, along with other frequent phrases such as “Never Give Up” and “Love You.” These are combined with bold, bright combinations of colour, heart motifs, and other emotive messaging that put his work at odds with the notion that street art is intended to be dark and edgy. In many ways, this can be seen as provocative in itself, an act of optimistic defiance against a world of pessimism.
Collaborations with celebrities have cemented Mr Brainwash’s fame; one of his earliest successes was a portrait of Madonna commissioned for the cover of her album Celebrate in 2009. Mr Brainwash has also created covers for artists such as Rick Ross and KYGO, and has connected with a wide range of celebrities throughout his career, from Michelle Obama, to Pelé, to Pope Francis, often in relation to various charity projects.
Buying and selling Mr Brainwash paintings and prints has been a hot topic almost throughout his entire career. Original Mr Brainwash artworks have been known to sell for tens of thousands of pounds at auction. His early-career headline sales, such as his original Charlie Chaplin Pink selling for over double its estimate at $122,500 in 2010, gained a huge amount of attention from collectors, which has continued to create demand for Mr Brainwash originals and limited editions. Interestingly, Mr Brainwash prints have not had the same secondary market impact as Banksy prints, which are kept to a limited number. Mr Brainwash often creates several versions of each print in different colourways, and produces these works with a frequency that have, so far, prevented demand from outstripping supply.
That being said, Mr Brainwash remains one of the most talked-about figures in the street art market, and there seems to be a consistent interest from those looking to start collecting Mr Brainwash art. Because of this, buying a Mr Brainwash print online through the secondary market can be an easy way to start such a collection. And of course, many of those seeking to buy Mr Brainwash art are doing so simply because they love his bold personality, philosophical outlook, and the defiantly uplifting messages behind the artworks he creates.
