News - Banksy, Virtue and Hamilton Finlay - 10th South Bank Awards - London

Friday 27th saw the 10th annual South Bank Show Awards take place at the Savoy in London. The event was hosted by Melvyn Bragg and was nothing, if not, star-studded – one great exclusive nod to the British arts. Covering everything from opera to drama and literature, the South Bank also honoured the visual arts. While the show has always walked along the thin line between cool and cultural, they really outdid themselves this year, nominating none other than Banksy, alongside more traditional artists John Virtue and Scotsman Ian Hamilton Finlay. This is a real coup from the South Bank. Virtue and Finlay are outstanding, well-established talents. They are true national treasures. Banksy, on the other hand, has come to notice though his sheer cheeky talent – and what a talent it is! You’d have to have been sleepwalking to have missed his sharp, quirky works that began in the East End, spreading across the walls of London like a spray canned sea. Whatever his feelings on this nomination, this is real mark for urban arts. Graffiti, and all its counterparts, has long been disregarded as child's play – but the simple fact is, Banksy, and those who have since followed in his footsteps, such as D’Face, have turned the spray can and stencil into something clever, witty and frankly, remarkable.