Banksy has accused fashion brand Guess of putting his artwork without authorization on a line of clothes.
After accusing the designer brand of violating his copyright, the anonymous street artist urged "all shoplifters" to visit its Regent Street location in London. The elusive artist shared a photo of goods on display in the Guess store window.
He wrote: “Attention all shoplifters. Please go to Guess on Regent Street. They’ve helped themselves to my artwork without asking, how can it be wrong for you to do the same to their clothes?”
Five mannequins were displayed in what appeared to be a duplicate of Banksy's Flower Thrower, dressed in items from the collection. The shop window had the words "Guess x Brandalised with graffiti by Banksy" written on it.
A "brand new capsule collection inspired by Banksy's graffiti" was originally announced by Guess and will include accessories as well as clothing for men, women, and children.
Prices for the merchandise range from £35 for a T-shirt to £230 for a fake fur coat with Banksy's Flying Balloon Girl painted on the back. Guess described the collection in a press release introducing it in Belgium as a "fashion-forward range of must-have pieces" that featured "iconic motifs from Banksy's graffiti."
The chief creative officer of Guess, Paul Marciano, was quoted as saying: “The graffiti of Banksy has had a phenomenal influence that resonates throughout popular culture.
“This new capsule collection with Brandalised is a way for fashion to show its gratitude.”
The pieces were created in collaboration with Brandalised, which the press release referred to as "an urban graffiti licence whose mission is to offer Banksy fans affordable graffiti collectibles."
Less than an hour after posting the picture that received more than 600,000 likes, security guards could be seen closing the store. Employees took down the collection's window advertisements while buyers were instructed to return any items they had not yet purchased to the shelves before leaving.
The 34-item fall and winter collection from Guess, created in partnership with graffiti clothing company Brandalised was launched on November 3 and is still available for purchase online.
