A Timeline of Every Piece From Banksy's "Better Out Than In" New York Residency

"There is absolutely no reason for doing this show at all,” he told the Voice. “I know street art can feel increasingly like the marketing wing of an art career, so I wanted to make some art without the price tag attached. There's no gallery show or book or film. It's pointless. Which hopefully means something.” —Banksy to the Village Voice

For the past month of October 2013, street artist Banksy hosted a residency on the streets of New York. During this time, he put up one new piece every day, joined Instagram to share them, stressed out the NYPD, and exposed a strong divide between the Banksy fans and haters.

Banksy may be leaving New York now that October has come and gone (or maybe he's not?), but we don't want to forget the questions he raised, the social aspects he made us rethink, and the laughs he provided. Relive the month with this Timeline of Every Piece From Banksy's "Better Out Than In" New York Residency.

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Better Out Than In

Date: Sept. 23, 2013
Location: Unknown
Key developments: Banksy's show turned out to be in New York not LA

Banksy's month-long residency in New York began with this piece in an unknown location. The work, which showed a stenciled man vomiting up flowers and weeds, was believed to be an announcement of an upcoming show in the City of Angels. The title of the piece itself is a British colloquialism akin to our exclamation, "Bless you."

Banksy had been generally under the radar for almost a year when this promotion was released, so the excitement for his resurfacing created a huge buzz. As the hype around "Better Out Than In" grew, people began to point out that the image looked similar to an image in Tyler, The Creator's "Yonkers" music video. Though Tyler, The Creator is from LA, the song refers to Yonkers, New York. Still, Banksy surprised us all when his first piece went up in New York on Oct. 1.

"Better Out Than In" followed in line with Banksy's drive to make his art accessible to the public. In a rare and exclusive interview with the Village Voice Banksy voiced his intention behind the project. "There is absolutely no reason for doing this show at all," he told the Voice. "I know street art can feel increasingly like the marketing wing of an art career, so I wanted to make some art without the price tag attached. There's no gallery show or book or film. It's pointless. Which hopefully means something."

The Street Is in Play

Date: Oct. 1, 2013
Location: 18 Allen Street (Chinatown)
Key developments: The "Graffiti Is a Crime" sign was stolen in less than 24 hours; "Street Crew," PHATLIPP, and others vandalized the piece further

The first piece of Banksy's month-long New York residency appeared in Chinatown. Next to the piece, Banksy included a phone number that would lead callers to a mock-guided tour of his work. Satirical audio tours accompanied his subsequent pieces in "Better Out Than In."

Less than 24 hours after Banksy's first stencil went up in Chinatown, someone stole the "Graffiti Is a Crime" sign and tagged "GMON" next to it. Later, a group known as "Street Crew" replaced the sign with a similar one that read "Street Art Is a Crime" and included their symbol. That was stolen, too, and eventually the entire mural was buffed.

Gothamist reported that PHATLIPP tagged over the whitewashed piece with the message "sweaty palms made me lose the love of my life! :(." PHATLIPP responded to this claim on Instagram by posting a photo of the same tag that was taken 4 days ago, long before Banksy's mural appeared. PHATLIPP's tag has also been whitewashed and covered with a stencil that reads "Banksy [greater than or equal to] Skrillex" with no identifying tags.

This Is My New York Accent

Date: Oct. 2, 2013
Location: 25th Street between 10th and 11th Avenue (Chelsea)
Key developments: This piece was destroyed and has "So What" tagged on top of it

The second Banksy to grace the streets of New York for the artist's October residency had a message reading, "This is My New York Accent" in stylized graffiti, followed by "...Normally I Write Like This" in stenciled lettering. The art was completely defaced with tags and angry messages quickly after it was discovered. Many saw it as a playful jab at the stereotypical tags of uncreative graffiti writers that hit New York City.

All I Ever Wanted Was a Shoulder to Crayon

Date: Oct. 3, 2013
Location: 24th Street and 6th Avenue (Midtown)
Key developments: Other artists tagged the piece; One man founded the Banksy Restoration Society

Banksy's 3rd piece appeared, depicting a dog pissing on a fire hydrant. The fire hydrant had a thought bubble attached, reading, "You complete me..." The playful piece was accompanied by the second audio description of the series, another satirical piece done in the style of a museum audio tour. The voiceover pokes fun at the nature of the art world and the artist himself, stating at one point, "Are you looking at one of the great artworks of the 21st century? If so, you're in the wrong place."

Once the piece was discovered, it quickly began collecting the tags of other artists. However, one man decided to start the Banksy Restoration Society, and took it upon himself to paint over the marks of these other artists. The idea of vandalizing vandalism has become a heated topic over the course of the artist's residency; some Banksy fans claim that people altering the original artwork are taking away from Banksy's works. Others argue that the tags added to Banksy's works are an essential part of street art.

The Musical

Date: Oct. 4, 2013
Location: All over New York (including Bushwick, Williamsburg, Delancey Street on the Lower East Side)
Key developments: Banksy continued to give random graffiti Broadway makeovers throughout the month

Banksy's 4th "Better Out Than In" piece consisted of painting "The Musical" under random graffiti that he found around the streets of the city. In his exclusive interview with the Village Voice, Banksy commented, "I'm figuring a lot of this out as I go along. Which is one way to keep it fresh, I suppose. The idea to make a stencil saying 'The Musical' only came up when I saw the 'Occupy' graffiti."

The pieces all speak to Banksy's pointed sense of humor. More importantly, however, these pieces are an epic reminder of what street art is all about. Instead of going out and making a new piece that will eventually be altered as all his others have, Banksy puts himself in the place of those who vandalize street art, by altering someone else's work himself. These pieces serve as an important reminder that street art belongs to no one and is therefore open to alterations by other artists. Rather than criticizing the changes that have been made to his work, Banksy is, in a way, supporting it. After all, the fact that no piece is ever stagnant or finished may be the greatest part of the genre.

Mobile Waterfall

Date: Oct. 5, 2013
Location: Touring New York at dusk (it was at 139 2nd Avenue in the East Village on the first night)
Key developments: This truck was the street artist's first undestroyed piece in New York; Someone attempted to attach a tracking device to the truck

For the 5th installation of his month-long residency, Banksy created a magical landscape in the back of a truck that traveled around the city, providing a brief, lush escape contrasting the overwhelming urban landscape of New York. The miniature landscape included a working waterfall, a rainbow, and butterflies. The piece also had the phone number for the 3rd part of the audio-guided tour. The hilarious voice-over provided an excellent satire of the stereotypical pretentious art community.

While pranks like attaching a tracking device to the truck were expected, Banksy catching and calling out the culprit on his website was not. He provided an image of the device with the text, "Please note: If you're the person who stuck a tracking device on the garden truck you're now following a car service in Queens."

Rebel Rocket Attack

Date: Oct. 6, 2013
Location: Online
Key developments: People on YouTube discovered that the audio came from a video showing footage of Syrian rebel terrorists launching missiles

On October 6, Banksy posted a video to his website instead of putting art out on the streets. The video is titled Rebel Rocket Attack and shows rebels shooting missile weapons into the sky and yelling "Allahu Akbar." Suddenly, they start running as something comes towards them and lands (presumably what they succeeded in shooting), which ends up being the Disney animated character, Dumbo. Banksy posted a clip of this video to his Instagram, captioned with, "I'm not posting any pictures today. Not after this shocking footage has emerged. Go to banksy.co.uk for the full video."

Fans came up with different theories about what the footage means. Some thought that the appearance of Dumbo references DUMBO, the part of Brooklyn "Down Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass." Others thought that the piece is a specific reference to terrorism in Syria, or a social critique about terrorism and rebellion in general. Banksy has been known to use elephants before to comment on the water crisis and poverty (the live, painted elephant at his Los Angeles exhibition in September 2006 and the text painted on a heavily discussed water tank in LA reading "This Looks A Bit Like an Elephant"). The video art could also be a comment on animal violence, similar to his 2008 New York exhibition, "Village Pet Store and Charcoal Grill."

Heart-Shaped Balloon

Date: Oct. 7, 2013
Location: King Street and Van Brunt (Red Hook)
Key developments: Banksy uploaded a picture to his website of a policeman photographing the piece; Omar tagged the piece; Someone tried to protect the piece with plexiglass that shattered; It is now covered by a steel box

For Banksy's 7th piece, he referenced a familiar symbol from his previous work. He depicted a red, heart-shaped ballon that was covered in bandages. Banksy has painted heart-shaped balloons before, such as his 2012 piece Girl With a Balloon in London.

After Banksy's work was tagged by Omar, it was covered in plexiglass to protect it, but the plastic casing was shattered shortly after. A man also took it upon himself to stand guard in front of the piece all night. The plexiglass has since been replaced by a steel box.

Plato Quote

Date: Oct. 8, 2013
Location: 266-270 Freeman Street (Brooklyn)
Key developments: The piece had someone else's graffiti added next to it; It was covered up for protection; Now the entire door has been removed

On October 8, Banksy did a piece with a faux Plato quote. The message read, "I have a theory that you can make any sentence seem profound by writing the name of a dead philosopher at the end of it -Plato." The inscription was made in a font that looked as if it could have been carved into stone.

On the same day, the Banksy work was tagged with other graffiti, and an unidentified man covered up the piece to "protect" it. One Brooklyn native, Robert Dunning, offered the man $1,000 and a new door in exchange for the artwork. The door was covered with a metal sheet and completely removed only four hours after it went up, and it is unknown who is currently in possession of it.

Crazy Horse

Date: Oct. 9, 2013
Location: 159 Ludlow Street (Lower East Side)
Key developments: The piece was eventually removed

Banksy's New York residency continued with the 9th piece depicting horses wearing goggles. The mural bleeds onto a car with targets and men holding weapons. The piece was accompanied by another audio file, however, rather than one of the previous parodies of a museum's audio tour, the file included for this piece was a disturbing clip of soldiers conversing during combat.

The audio is taken from a classified 39-minute video from the July 12, 2007 Baghdad airstrikes, leaked by WikiLeaks in 2010. The strike left up to 18 dead, including a Reuters photographer, as well as wounding two innocent children. In the recording, you can hear one of the men tell the others that there is a wounded child, to which another man responds, "Oh well. It's their fault for bringing a kid to a battle." This piece is a pointed outcry against the horrific crimes committed during war times and a return to the strong political themes that Banksy is known for.

Beaver

Date: Oct. 10, 2013
Location: Bradford and Pitkin (Brooklyn)
Key developments: Some opportunist Brooklynites decided to hide the piece and collect $20 from any person who wanted to see or take a picture of it; The beaver's face was chiseled off and a message was left in its place

October 10's piece showed a beaver appearing to have taken down an existing sign. Interestinlgy enough, a few Brooklyn locals who found the piece quickly took it upon themselves to exploit Banksy's work for a profit. They covered the piece with some cardboard and bullied visitors into paying them in order to view and photograph the art. Although this goes against the ideals of street art being accessible to all, it did protect the art for a while. Once the men left, the beaver's face was chiseled off, the knocked over sign was removed, and someone left a message reading: "WE DONT NEED MORE RATS-MATH."

Sirens of the Lambs

Date: Oct. 11, 2013
Location: Touring the Meatpacking District and then the rest of the city for two weeks
Key developments: Banksy posted a video of people reacting to the truck's first appearance on the streets

The 11th installation of Banksy's residency was a slaughterhouse delivery truck that had plush farm animals peaking their heads out of it. As adorable as the stuffed animals were, they moved and squealed in terror, making the piece more horrifying than endearing. The disturbing piece serves as an intense reminder of cruelty in the meat harvesting industry.

One man posted an image on Twitter of the truck with staff members preparing it for a day in the city, claiming that he had discovered the warehouse Banksy was working out of. This tweet caused a huge controversy between eager members of the media trying to get their hands on the address of the warehouse and die-hard fans who did not want Banksy to be discovered. The truck, like the Waterfall Truck, was touring the five boroughs throughout the duration of the artist's residency.

Concrete Confessional

Date: Oct. 12, 2013
Location: 7 Cooper Square (East Village)
Key developments: Someone added a beard to the piece before Cooper Union was able to move it for safety; The two other blocks were also painted in (although one is Banksy-esque, he claims to have only done one)

The 12th piece of "Better Out Than In" depicts a priest resting his forehead on his hand against a red background that is framed by concrete. AnimalNewYork discovered the location and source image of this piece—a photo of a Jesuit priest at the Martyr's Shrine in Ontario, taken by Berni Schoenfield in the 1950s.

This isn't Banksy's first religious commentary. In December 2011, he shared a vandalized sculpture of a priest in Liverpool. Banksy commented on that project with, "I'm never sure who deserves to be put on a pedestal or crushed under one." He added, "The statue? I guess you could call it a Christmas present. At this time of year it's easy to forget the true meaning of Christianity—the lies, the corruption, the abuse."

Original Artwork for Sale

Date: Oct. 13, 2013
Location: Central Park
Key developments: Two people later made a fake Banksy art sale which sold out in an hour

On October 13, Banksy set up a stall in Central Park, where an elderly man sold original Banksy art pieces for $60 a piece. Most passersby assumed that the work was fake, or maybe just didn't recognize it, and the booth was ignored, only selling eight canvases to three individuals throughout the entire day. These signed pieces are valued to be worth somewhere around $30,000 each. Banksy uploaded the video to his website with the comment, "Please note: This was a one-off. The stall will not be there again today."

One week after Banksy's sale in Central Park, two artists, Dave Cicirelli and Lance Pilgrim, rented the exact same space and set up a stand of their own. The stand looked nearly identical to Banksy's except that this one was filled with fakes. The paintings were sold for $60, and each came with a Certificate of Inauthenticity, making it clear to customers that the artwork was fake. It is unclear as to whether the customers were assuming this was another one of Banksy's schemes or if it was just the hype created around the Banksy name that drove the sales.

Regardless, the stand completely sold out in an hour. All 40 canvases were purchased, including the price sign. In an interview with AnimalNewYork, Cicirelli stated, "We wouldn't have sold any if not for the media hype around Banksy. That was kind of the point—we wanted to complete his statement about the nature of hype and the value of art. Banksy's stunts have created a haze of uncertainty around everything, and we created 'Fake Banksy' within that haze."

What We Do in Life Echoes in Eternity

Date: Oct. 14, 2013
Location: 69th Street and 28th Avenue (Queens)
Key developments: The piece was vandalized with the tags "Problem Child NYC" and "Banksy x Berdo" within a few hours

The artwork reads, "What we do in life echoes in eternity," as a man erases the piece with a sponge. It could as easily be a comment on the removal of Banksy's own pieces as it is a literal statement about temporality and time.

Heidi Trenholm, a Queens resident, spotted the piece beneath a blue tarp (and shared the photo below with AnimalNewYork) before Banksy shared it on Instagram.

Banksy uploaded the piece to his website with the caption, "Some people criticize me for using sources that are a bit low-brow (this quote is from Gladiator), but you know what? I'm just going to use that hostility to make me stronger, not weaker, as Kelly Rowland said on the X Factor."

According to AnimalNewYork, the piece was already vandalized around 8:30 p.m. ET with the tags "Problem Child NYC" and "Banksy x Berdo."

Twin Towers

Date: Oct. 15, 2013
Location: Staple Street & Jay Street (TriBeca)
Key developments: An unfinished copy of this piece was found in Brooklyn; It was covered in plexiglass to protect it

Banksy's 15th piece for his New York residency is a memorial of the Twin Towers. The piece depicts the original World Trade Center buildings with a bright orange flower that makes it look like there is an explosion in one of the towers (but the explosion has been replaced with a flower), as an allusion to 9/11.

Fans have responded to the powerful work with praise; someone even wrote a note asking Banksy "haters" to respectfully not alter or tag this piece. Overnight, the Banksy 9/11 tribute became a memorial ringed in flowers and candlelight.

The following day, an individual stole the flower on one of the towers and posted an image and super weird video of it on his Instagram @lastsuspect, with a promise to distribute the petals around the city. The thief is receiving heated comments for disturbing Banksy's work. In an attempt to preserve the piece, it has been covered in plexiglass and then painted over in blue.

Gothamist also reported that they had found an unfinished version of this same piece in Brooklyn the day before. The piece appears to be identical except for the absence of the tower spires and the orange flower. They suspect that this piece was the original location, but that Banksy was unable to finish, likely because there is heavy police surveillance in the area.

Ronald McDonald

Date: Oct. 16, 2013
Location: Various locations
Key developments: 10 cops threatened the shoe shiner with a ticket for disorderly conduct; The Sirens of the Lambs truck moved the statue just in time

On October 16, Banksy shared a sculpture of the McDonald's mascot, Ronald McDonald, having his clown shoes shined by a real man. McDonald's stern face looks down impatiently at the degraded man who sits on the floor shining his shoes.

This powerful critique on big corporations and the elite contrasts his Twin Tower memorial piece from the day before, but remains true to the strong anti-establishment ideals that Banksy is known to paint about. The shoe shiner himself is not wearing shoes, and the clothes he is in are torn and filthy. When asked questions, his response was simply "No English."

A photo of the piece was put up on Banksy's website with the caption, "A fiberglass replica of Ronald McDonald having his shoes shined by a real live boy. The sculpture will visit the sidewalk outside a different McDonalds every lunchtime for the next week." The artwork was accompanied by another satirical audio file providing information about the piece in the style of a guided tour.

Gothamist reported that at one point the shoe shiner was threatened by the NYPD with a ticket for disorderly conduct, because he was blocking the sidewalk. Before the 10 cops could take any action, however, Banksy's Sirens of the Lambs truck hauled the statue away.

When Mayor Bloomberg was asked about Banksy at an unrelated press conference, he stated, "But look, graffiti does ruin people's property and it's a sign of decay and loss of control. Art is art and nobody's a bigger supporter of the arts than I am. I just think there are some places for art and there are some places [not for] art. And you running up to somebody's property or public property and defacing it is not my definition of art. Or it may be art, but it should not be permitted. And I think that's exactly what the law says."

Japanese Women

Date: Oct. 17, 2013
Location: Cook Street and Graham Avenue (Williamsburg)
Key developments: STF tried to tag this piece, but the building owner knocked him over to save it; The piece was then covered by plexiglass and eventually fitted for a permanent frame

For his 17th piece, Banksy created a scene of two women in traditional Japanese dress conversing on a bridge, which is part of the original building. A bonsai tree sprouts from the ground below the women, creating a full composition.

The scene could be inspired by a traditional Japanese woodblock print and a technique called ukiyo-e, making it an homage to Japanese culture. At the same time, it could be interpreted as offensive, playing off of a geisha stereotype and the exoticism of Eastern cultures. If we look at it this way, the silhouettes act in the same way as Kara Walker's cutouts of caricatures of black slaves, which play off of American racial stereotypes.

A man who calls himself STF tried to tag Banksy's newest work, reports AnimalNY, but the building's owner knocked him to the ground and protected the piece. A group of people stepped up to clean up the vandal's tag. The piece was then covered in plexiglass for protection, and later, a roll-down metal security gate was installed to secure its safety. This action has received mixed responses from fans, who are happy that the piece is being kept safe but disappointed that they can no longer view it.

Banksy x Os Gemeos

Date: Oct. 18, 2013
Location: 18 West 24 Street between 10th and 11th Avenues (Chelsea)
Key developments: The exhibition lasted for one weekend

On the 18th day of "Better Out Than In," Banksy shared an image of two collaboration pieces with Brazilian art twins Os Gemeos. An image of the paintings was shared with a location and the description, "Are you the sort of person who enjoys going to art galleries but wished they had more gravel in them? Then this temporary exhibition space is for you. Housing just two paintings but also featuring a bench, some carpet, and complimentary refreshments."

The installation was a clear parody of a gallery setting and even included another audio-guided tour. The audio file's narrator takes a direct bash at galleries and the art world, pointedly stating, "It's an art world tradition to ignore the paintings and gossip over drinks."

The artwork was on display for one full day with security personnel ensuring that it would not be removed or tampered with. It was originally reported by the NY Post that the space was rented by Banksy for $50,000; however, since then, it has been revealed that the owner of the space, Alf Naman, allowed Banksy to use the space free of charge.

Anthill Video

Date: Oct. 19, 2013
Location: Staten Island
Key developments: There has recently been speculation as to whether this piece actually depicts a woman or a man

For his 19th piece, Banksy shared a very suggestive video on his website. The video starts with a close-up of a swarming anthill. The camera steadily zooms out, revealing that the area around the hole has been made to look like a woman's legs and hips. Need we say more?

The exact location of this anthill has yet to be established, but it is similar to one that Banksy did in London. For that piece, he transformed a bush hanging over a wall by also drawing a womans legs and hips around it.

Boy Swinging Mallet

Date: Oct. 20, 2013
Location: 79th St between Broadway and Amsterdam (Upper West Side)
Key developments: Plexiglass was used to cover this piece (the plexiglass was tagged); Jerry Saltz (New York Magazine art critic) gave an impromptu art lesson in front of the piece and temporarily took off the tagged plexiglass

October 20 brought us another Banksy stencil on the walls of the Upper West Side. The piece shows a little boy swinging a mallet at a standpipe, resembling a child testing his strength with a high-strike carnival game.

One individual approached the piece with a spray can in hand but was tackled to the ground by a fan. The piece was then covered in plexiglass to prevent anyone else from trying to do the same. An unknown individual then tagged over the plexiglass in red. New York Magazine art critic Jerry Saltz made his way over to the piece to engage in a public dialogue about Banksy and street art.

Ghetto 4 Life

Date: Oct. 21, 2013
Location: 153rd Street and Elton Avenue (The Bronx)
Key developments: A blue tag appeared above the piece, but the piece as a whole is still intact; The building owner is looking to cover the piece

For the 21st piece of Banksy's New York residency, the street artist stenciled a little boy tagging a wall with the words "Ghetto 4 Life," while a tuxedo-wearing butler stands next to him, holding spray paint on a tray.

Blue tags quickly appeared around the Banksy artwork. The owner of the wall became concerned and hired some locals to protect the piece. After that, the owner had the wall professionally covered in plexiglass and a roller metal door was installed in order to ensure the artwork's safety.

The piece has stirred controversy from confusion about its meaning. The president of the Bronx borough, Ruben Diaz Jr, released a statement arguing that, "What Banksy, who is presumed to be both white and English, may not have realized, is that in American culture a white person using the word 'ghetto' can be perceived as racially charged, in that it suggests a not-so-subtle pejorative towards people of color meant to implicitly infer low-class, uneducated and criminal in nature." We're guessing that Banksy knows exactly what it means, and that his use of the word was 100% intentional.

Sphinx

Date: Oct. 22, 2013
Location: 127th Street and 35th Avenue (Willets Point)
Key developments: A man sold cinderblock bricks from the statue for $100 each

Banksy's version of the Great Sphinx of Giza in Egypt was made out of foam and cinderblocks and left next to a polluted body of water in Queens. The installation is a recreation of the incredible sculpture built under the rule of Pharaoh Khafre between 2558–2532 BC.

Banksy uploaded the artwork on his website with the playful caption, "Everything but the kitchen Sphinx. A 1/36 scale replica of the great Sphinx of Giza made from smashed cinderblocks. You're advised not to drink the replica Arab spring water." While Banksy's sphinx replica has the shape of the original, the artist's version uses skull features instead of a living face. This macabre duplicate of a statue that was once an icon of civilization and progress is a dark reminder of culture's fall from greatness. Alternately, the decaying cinderblocks used in the construction of the Sphinx point out that greatness can grow from the scraps of a city.

A man who claimed to witness "two hipsters" dropping off the new Banksy this morning declared the piece his own and removed the art from the scene. Before taking off, he sold cinderblock bricks from the statue for about $100 each.

Police Activity

Date: Oct. 23, 2013
Location: Online
Key developments: None

On October 23, Banksy uploaded a photo to his website and Instagram that read: "Today's art has been cancelled due to police activity." It is still unclear as to whether the photo was Banksy's apology for not providing art on that particular day or if the photo was the art.

Banksy has proved to be concerned with the accessibility of his work and has expressed his dissatisfaction with the removal of his work, so maybe he finally found the medium where he could express it without interference—the Internet. This "piece" shows everything he tries to do with his art—it is there for everyone, no one can own it, and it cannot be taken down and sold by someone.

Waiting in Vain at the Door of the Club

Date: Oct. 24, 2013
Location: Larry Flynt's NY Hustler Club & Cigar Lounge at 641 West 51st Street
Key developments: The club removed this piece and released a statement of their intent to keep it inside the club

The 24th piece of Banksy's New York residency is a stencil of a man holding wilted red flowers. Banksy uploaded an image of the piece to his website with the caption, "Waiting in vain."

A security guard was posted outside of the club to protect the piece but continued to allow fans to pose with it. The Hustler Club's New York Marketing Director, Steve Karel, told Gothamist: "We're honored that Banksy chose the Larry Flynt's Hustler Club New York to share his art. We respect the art and artist; while we'd love to leave the work in place, it's required we lift the gate when we open for business, so after the public has the day to enjoy it, we will remove the door to keep it safe from vandals until we determine where it can be displayed in the future-hopefully inside of the club." The piece was removed from the wall, and its current location is unknown.

Grim Reaper

Date: Oct. 25, 2013
Location: Houston and Elizabeth Streets (Bowery)
Key developments: Hyperallergic connected the dots between this piece and an earlier painting that Banksy had done and given to a band named Exit Through the Gift Shop (as compensation for stealing their name and using it for his documentary)

This Halloween-themed piece shows a Grim Reaper riding a bumper car. Banksy built suspense for this piece by posting on his website that the piece wouldn't be revealed until 5 p.m. (it was actually posted at 6 p.m.). This left time for people to guess why the new project was taking up so much time. Gothamist called the location before the piece was unveiled, and there were lines of people waiting for the unveil. Who knew that Banksy would embrace the halloween spirit to this extent?

Alternative New York Bumper Slogan

Date: Oct. 26, 2013
Location: The truck was originally parked at 131 47th Street between 1st and 2nd Avenues
Key developments: The truck has been moved by the owner who is planning to sell it

For the 26th piece in his New York residency, Banksy gave a graffiti makeover to a random truck in Sunset Park, Brooklyn, spraying it with the words, "The grumpier you are, the more assholes you meet..." Banksy posted a photo of the artwork, writing, "Alternative New York bumper slogan."

The owner of the truck has moved it to an unknown location in order to prevent it from being tampered with and revealed his plan to sell the entire truck to the highest bidder.

This Site Contains Blocked Messages

Date: Oct. 27, 2013
Location: Noble and West Streets (Greenpoint)
Key developments: The lettering of this piece was painted over by a woman in a hard hat and a mask

The 27th Banksy was a stencil over buffed graffiti that read, "This site contains blocked messages" in the iconic New York Times font. Banksy wrote on his website that the actual 27th piece for his New York residency was supposed to be an op-ed for the New York Times. He uploaded a photo of the editorial that he wrote, criticizing One World Trade Center for being too bland, spineless, and safe. Banksy responded to the rejection of his writing with this strong anti-censorship mural.

While the street art is clever and gives New York another taste of Banksy's usual social criticisms, the article he wrote for the New York Times is probably the more interesting part of the art. Throughout the editorial, Banksy writes very critically of the Daniel Libeskind-designed building: "How does it stand up without a spine? It looks like it never wanted to be built in the first place."

Gothamist reported that this Banksy was quickly painted over by a woman in a hardhat and mask, check out the photos.

Robot Graffiti Writer

Date: Oct. 28, 2013
Location: Stillwell and Neptune (Coney Island)
Key developments: Locals tried to board up the artwork to protect it; Animal New York discovered that the barcode references human genetics

The 28th piece of the month-long project shows a robot spray-painting his tag: a barcode. Animal New York pointed out that the barcode is a reference to human genetics.

It is important to note that this is not Banksy's first graffiti-writing robot. Earlier this year, he painted a mural of a boy wearing a homemade robot costume drawing a robot on the wall of the Grosvenor Hotel in Torquay, England. This piece was famously boarded up by locals who wanted to preserve the artwork. Fans were happy to help install the system and applauded the owner and helpers for taking the time and consideration to protect it.

The Banality of the Banality of Evil

Date: Oct. 29, 2013
Location: 157 East 23rd Street
Key developments: The piece was sold at auction for $615,000 (its starting price was $74,000)

Banksy's 29th work is an altered canvas—a serene landscape painting that he bought from Housing Works and then added a Nazi overlooking the view. According to one of the store managers, the store sold the painting by K. Sager two months ago for 50 dollars. The store was tipped off during the day that they had a real Banksy, but the specific time Banksy donated the piece is unknown.

Housing Works is a New York City-based non-profit that raises money to help fight HIV, AIDS, and homelessness. The painting was auctioned off to raise money for the organization and began on Tuesday night at $74,000. The auction closed on Oct. 31st at 8:00 P.M. ET, and the piece sold for $615,000, even though it was predicted by Jon Satin, moderator of banksy.info, that the piece would sell for at least one million dollars.

Bronx Zoo

Date: Oct. 30, 2013
Location: East 162nd Street and Jerome Avenue (Yankee Stadium)
Key developments: Kanye tweeted a picture of it with the caption "Banksy #GODMODE" (the tweet has since been deleted)

This piece is a big wild cat resting on a yellow line in front of a blue background. The title of the piece is Bronx Zoo, even though it is located near Yankee Stadium.

Everyone is speculating what kind of wild feline this graphic animal really is—a cheetah? A jaguar? A leopard? Gothamist pointed out that the piece is probably referring to the time period (1972-1981) that the Yankees were called the Bronx Zoo due to the conflict between George Steinbrenner, Billy Martin, and Reggie Jackson.

Banksy! Balloon

Date: Oct. 31, 2013
Location: Borden Avenue and 35th Street
Key developments: A man tried to take the balloons but was arrested by police; The balloons were taken in by cops afterward; Banksy left a jpeg on his website for fans to print T-shirts with

Although we were expecting the last piece for "Better Out Than In" to floor us all, the simplicity of this final work is so quintessentially "Banksy" that it's hard not to love.

The piece looks like a tag on a graffiti-covered building in Queens but is actually seven painted balloons that spell out "BANKSY!" in comical bubble letters. The artwork simultaneously mocks and participates in the graffiti-bombing that already exists on the Queens location, asserting Banksy within the local street art scene yet maintaining a critical distance from the native writers. Banksy brought the month-long residency to a close in style, bidding farewell on his website with: "And that's it. Thanks for your patience. It's been fun. Save 5pointz. Bye."

Banksy also gave fans an opportunity to commemorate the month-long art experience with their very own souvenir T-shirt: "Now available—the official Banksy New York residency souvenir T-shirt (you have to take the jpeg to a copy store and make it yourself)." Well done.