Are We There Yet? A Day Trip To
Banksy's Dismaland and Weston-super-Mare
Banksy's Dismaland featured works from 58 artists and was a 'Bemusment Park' a play on Disneyland and other over-hyped tourist corporations. Banksy himself described it as, “a festival of art, amusements and entry-level anarchism” adding: “This is an art show for the 99% who'd rather be at Alton Towers.” (the FT)
Banksy said: “I loved the Tropicana as a kid, so getting to throw these doors open again is a real honour. “I hope everyone from Weston will take the opportunity to once more stand in a puddle of murky water eating cold chips to the sound of crying children.”
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Although billed as a family theme park, Dismaland’s website warns of “uneven floor surfaces, extensive use of strobe lighting, imagery unsuitable for small children and swearing”.
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Working with designer Tristan Manco and Art Producer Kath Cockshaw, Cawston's photographs and the book 'Are We There Yet? where images from Dismaland were juxtaposed with pictures of Weston, became the official record of the art event and featured on Banksys website for three years and can be viewed on his webpage http://dismaland.co.uk/.
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A second edition of the book is planned to coincide with an exhbition of the photographs at Weston-super-Mare Museum next year.