If your main problem with amusement parks is that none of it is particularly amusing, then you’ll love Banksy’s latest show. Arranged like a theme park and spread over the abandoned, sea-facing grounds of a former public swimming pool, Dismaland was commissioned by the British graffitist to over 50 artists who all entered into the spirit of the stated mission: A theme park whose big theme is: theme parks should have bigger themes…
Featuring such non-Disney pre-occupations as urban decay, war, oil money and its vulgar uses, the corporate takeover of childhood and the burning of Jeffrey Archer novels, this ‘bemusement park’ houses the contributions by artists known for their unsettling visions. Like, Damien Hirst, most famous for his installation of half a cow and calf preserved in a glass tank of formaldehyde; Jenny Holzer, whose work consists of almost poetic lines of all-caps text projected on public buildings (Sample: ‘IT TAKES A WHILE BEFORE YOU CAN STEP OVER INERT BODIES AND GO AHEAD WITH WHAT YOU WERE TRYING TO DO’); and Ronit Baranga, who makes ceramics with teeth. Literally:
Here’s a warning from Dismaland’s organisers: This event contains adult themes, distressing imagery, extended use of strobe lighting, smoke effects and swearing. The following items are strictly prohibited: knives, spraycans, illegal drugs, and lawyers from the Walt Disney corporation.
Flip through to see images from Dismaland, which will be on from August 22 to September 27, 2015
Photographs: Christopher Jobson for Colossal, Yui Mok for PA WIRE
