Anti-Capitalist Artist Makes Big Bucks Off Flaming Banks
- Posted on September 13, 2011 at 4:45pm by
Buck Sexton
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For one Los Angeles-based painter, scenes of anti-capitalist anarchy have really paid off.
Alex Schaefer has recently sold a 22-by-28-inch canvas (above) to a German art collector for $25,000. A 6-by-8 work also garnered $3,600 from a collector in Britain, and more paintings are underway.
But police weren‘t among the early admirers of Schaefer’s work. In July, while he was set up outside a Chase bank branch in Los Angeles, Schaefer was stopped and questioned by patrol officers who were responding to a complaint that the painting frightened passersby.
Copycat Painting, "Fed Burning"
The police were apparently concerned that there was a terrorist threat implied in the painting. According to the Los Angeles Times, police told told Schaefer that:
“They had to find out my intention. They asked if I was a terrorist and was I going to follow through and do what I was painting.”
Once Schaefer convinced the patrol officers that he did not actually intend to set any banks on fire, they left. But three weeks later, two plain clothes detectives came to his residence and followed up with more questions about his inflammatory painting style.
More than anything else, law enforcement’s interest in the paintings has served as free press for the artist and probably helped inflate prices on the international market due to the internet attention.
A series of copycats have also popped up on Ebay. The bidding on this original watercolor starts at $21, so it has a ways to go before it gets up around Schaefer’s $25,000 windfall.
As for politics behind the paintings, Schaefer appears to have a clear anti-capitalsm and anti-bank animus that stretches far beyond Chase.
In an interview last week with Max Keiser about his burning bank paintings, Schaefer said:
“I don’t hate the banks, but I do perceive them now to be criminals.”
Schaefer also claimed to have other burning bank paintings in the works that will depict more Chase branches, a Bank of America, and a Citibank on fire. He plans to display the series of burning bank images at a February show called “Disaster Capitalism.”
Keiser referred Schaefer as the “Cezanne of Arson.“ Schaefer countered ”Maybe the Monet.”
You can watch the full interview here, courtesy of Russia Today:
While the paintings are constitutionally protected speech, and may be nothing more than artistic expression, they could also be reflective of a simmering anti-capitalist movement in the U.S. that may reach a boil in the weeks and months ahead.
We already know, for example, that a supposedly non-violent “Day of Rage” has been planned to take over Wall Street in New York City on September 17th.
The “Day of Rage” movement has also singled out JP Morgan Chase — which is the subject of Schaefer’s most well-known painting.”
In addition, the possibility that the Euro may collapse is now on the horizon. Economic discontent appears all too capable of creating widespread riots similar to those that have already rocked Greece. As we have seen with the recent U.K. mobs, the welfare state appears to be fertile ground for anarchic upheavals in the name of vaguely defined discontent.
And so the question remains: are Schaefer’s paintings a case of art imitating life, or life imitating art, in the not-too-distant future?
(h/t Gawker)
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Comments (103)
evilhatemonger
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 7:01pmWhat a bunch of crap. I think that “Dogs playing Poker” is more artistic. This is the stuff that parents get called into the office at school for, when little Johnny does it. “We need to talk about Johnny’s hostility…” So what does douchenozzle do with his cash, bury it in his back yard?
Report Post »bestartist
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 8:38pmYikes, what you said, EvilHateMonger!!!!
Report Post »There are a lot of times lately when I hang my head in embarrassment for my fellow “artists”, most of it is such a load of c#$p, no wonder a lot of people think artists are self indulgent idiots.
This guy’s painting chops leave a LOT to be desired and I seriously doubt he gives all his money away or keeps it under a mattress.
And…anyone who would pay that amount for that murky nonsense is either blind or crazy.
JQCitizen
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 9:24pmOh, don’t you just bet he GIVES IT ALL TO THE POOR, (right!). If those buildings go up, can he be charged for incitement?
Stupid guy probably gets “grants”, or he wouldn’t have time to stand there waiting for someone to come along and buy his CRAP!!!!
Report Post »TotallyBelievableGuy
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 10:13pmRight-wingers go after anti-capitalist for making money.
Are you just angry he isn’t consistent enough with his ideology? Or upset that calling him an “anti-capitalist” might actually be a load of crap?
Report Post »thepatriotdave
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 10:45pmHis work will be featured on every Anarchist website that’s promoting the Day-Of-Rage to start on the 17th.
Report Post »Uranium Wedge
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 11:16pmSo tell me mister “artist”, how do you spell irony? Way to use capitalism to sell your communist crap… Good job
Report Post »mrqstixx
Posted on September 14, 2011 at 5:49amEHM
Report Post »“ Douchenozzle ” ? I love it ! Can I borrow that ?
Quiata
Posted on September 14, 2011 at 6:48amWait! Don’t you guys realize that government-mandated sharing only applies to those who don’t create art? (snarky sarcasm intended)
Report Post »TheWholeTruth
Posted on September 14, 2011 at 11:43amWell, this proves it. You guys are still asleep and will buy anything fed to you by the media. The guy is NOT anti-capitalist, he’s anti-corporatist. He was interviewed fully on another radio station (very conservative) and his explanation was that he is a site painter. He set up and then was listening to the radio and things were running through his mind as they were reporting the British riots. He explained that the painting was what he saw coming here. That it wouldn’t be long before the things going on around the world made it to America.
So does this make him ‘evil?’ A left-wing, progressive, hater? I would say that it makes him like us. Even Glenn says he can see these things coming. Not from the conservatives but from the left. Just because a man paints what he feels is coming soon to a neighborhood near you, doesn’t mean that he is the one that is trying and hoping to bring it about.
Please.. try to get the FULL story from BOTH sides before you decide to condemn a person or you are just as bad as those you say you are ‘fighting.’
Report Post »duplex_planet
Posted on September 14, 2011 at 2:20pmAlex is a brilliant artist with exceptional talent. Don’t you think he understood the irony of making tons of money off of his anti-capitalist painting? What is even more beautiful is knowing he wasn’t seeking this kind of attention when he started. After 22 years of painting humbly this controversy was sparked apontaneously. He is finally getting the recognition he desrves for the strong mesages he has ALWAYS delivered. Kudos, my friend.
Report Post »robertsgt40
Posted on September 14, 2011 at 3:26pmSchaefer has done more for the economy than Barry and banksters combined. Hats off. Someone has to say something. BTW, selling a painting to a German helps with the trade deficit
Report Post »tcvegas
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 7:01pmhttp://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/may/05/greek-bailout-economic-crisis-deaths
And to think, it was only a few months ago when left wing rioters caused the burning death of 3 bank employees in Greece after engaging in a real life version of this “art”, one a pregnant woman. Union thugs of course. They blocked the fire department from approaching the bank as well. One thing anarchists hate is anarchy. They only riot as long as the laws of civil society prevent their wholesale extermination…which would of course be the result of true anarchy. It is important to arm yourself against these types of thugs.
Report Post »sabrinacle
Posted on September 14, 2011 at 10:31amoh stop. This is America not Greece and while we may decend into acting like Greece in a year or two, this guy did a perfectly fine job of using his freedom of speech. Granted it isnt a cross dunked in urine, but if it is offensive to you, then it has served its purpose. I am all for it and the sentiment it expresses. Chase bank is crooked to the core as are most banks these days and this guy is a hero for surving the brownshirt style antagonism he got from the secret servise. OMG you are still in America…WAKE UP
Report Post »TheWholeTruth
Posted on September 14, 2011 at 11:55am@SABRINACLE Welcome my friend. Thanks you for not instantly taking the point that this guy is one of those we are fighting. He isn’t. He is a very well mannered person with clear thinking and his point was that this is what he sees coming here. He doesn’t like the corporate fascism being perpetrated on the American people by J.P. Morgan and other banksters. He sees what they are doing and that what they are doing will lead the left and people who are blind followers to start the physical destruction of America. He knows of the Problem/Reaction/Solution ‘plot’ and just felt, as he was listening to reports of riots around the world, that he just had to paint it. Other artists should understand that sudden ‘inspiration’ that comes over them in the middle of a project. When he first started painting, it was just a normal painting and then that ‘urge’ came over him and he added the flames. It was just something that all of a sudden he saw in his mind’s eye. A premonition so to speak.
Report Post »Quiata
Posted on September 14, 2011 at 9:52pm@THEWHOLETRUTH, Please don’t be offended when people react to a painting at face value. A work of art should (ideally) be able to convey a story on its own without notes, captions, or lengthy explanations. The painting in question contains a certain amount of ambiguity which allows viewers to interpret it in a myriad of ways. The artist only has so much control over a painting’s inherent “meaning” once it’s released; artists frequently encounter unexpected reactions due to unintended interpretations.
Report Post »progressiveslayer
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 7:01pmAh yes the communists have removed the mask all out in the open,I have a better painting in mind I’d like to see a painting of dead communists yes every communist is just dead,now that would be a masterpiece.
Report Post »n0klu
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 7:32pmYes and we must take their manes down so that when real conservatives regain control of this country once again we can round up the commies and deport or make them “disappear”.
Report Post »TotallyBelievableGuy
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 10:28pmYou wanna kill communists? Well, I’m sure your buddy, Jesus, would approve of that.
Report Post »Outlaw_Josey_Wales
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 6:56pmLooks like a picture of the LA roits.
Report Post »I SPY
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 6:31pmI hear Al Gore has a similar racket where he paints a sloppy picture of global dooooom, except Gore is set to make hundreds of millions, not just a few grand.
Report Post »Shasta
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 6:59pmIt has been said that Gore’s net worth went up from two million dollars to over a hundred million dollars since leaving the white house and starting his scam.
Report Post »4truth2all
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 9:36pmHow ‘s that Beatles song go…..a fool and his money…….
Report Post »TheLeftMadeMeRight
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 6:24pm“They had to find out my intention. They asked if I was a terrorist and was I going to follow through and do what I was painting.”
Now that’s some great police work! Hey, you a terrorist? No? Didn’t think so. Move along…nothing to see hear…
And will this clown be held responsible if this comes to past? Why no, it’s ART!
Report Post »sabrinacle
Posted on September 14, 2011 at 10:35amyou must be really stupid. Please just take a minute and see anyone painting anything the police dont want other people to see. I can tell you have never read the constitution or the bill of rights or you never even question this guys right to paint a burning bank. Read history if the constituion is too hard to understand (sarcasm intened) and you will see that freedom of speech makes you more free, not less
Report Post »rufuscharles
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 6:19pmAnti-capitalists are great aren’t they? As long as they can make money from their “efforts”.
But as for you and me making money, yeah, not so much encouraged.
BTW, as an art dealer for over 30 years, I feel qualified to say, his painting sucks.
Report Post »Patriot Z
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 6:53pmexactly. ‘anti-capitalists’ are some of the biggest capitialists out there. they are capitalist with their money and marxist with everyone elses. the same people who demanded banks make loans to people that could not afford them are now crying because they got their wish. they pretty much just want everyone to pay for them.
Report Post »cromag11b
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 6:16pmFinding a product to sell into a niche market IS capitalism.
Report Post »Chuck Stein
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 6:57pmI suppose you would buy one if it included burning bank workers (a la Athens).
Report Post »squeaker
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 6:02pmMaybe he can team up with the underwear bomber
Report Post »opNorthwoods
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 6:00pmthis painter is really Awesome!! , the tittle of the article is missleading The bLaze , watch the interview he made with alex jones
Report Post »KickinBack
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 5:58pmMaking money off of his own work. What a greedy capitalistic pig!! He’s anit-capatalist? I’m confused..
Report Post »miles from nowhere
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 5:44pmI do trust todays banks, there seems to be a sinister undertone coming from the people who are presiding over them.
Report Post »Pontiac
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 6:13pm.
Report Post »Why did I just waste 13min listening to this limp-wristed interview?
.
Why would the banks care about making bad loans when the government buys them or punishes them when they don’t make the bad loans?
.
Someone needs to paint Chris Dodd and Barney Frank on fire.
brickmoon
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 5:42pmShould be paid with a painting of a burning check.
Report Post »Thatsitivehadenough
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 5:40pmHe’s representative of the New Age Communists: antii-Capitalist-capitalists.
More idiots from the left fomenting violence and revolution.
Report Post »Brizz
Posted on September 14, 2011 at 11:18amNo surprise, he teaches at the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena. The academic environment for the fine arts isn’t exactly diverse in thought. I can appreciate his talent, but like so many other artists, he had to do something controversial to get noticed. Free speech is the most valuable asset to many artist. Congrats to him for capitalizing on what he loathes.
Report Post »RightUnite
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 5:35pmGee, it would be a shame if this guys paintings all the sudden just went up in flames wouldn’t it?? Gee, I hope he has them in a safe place!
Report Post »THX-1138
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 5:33pm“There’s a sucker born every minute.” – P. T. Barnum
…and, my personal fav…
“It is morally wrong to allow a sucker to keep his money.” – W. C. Fields
I hope he gets rich. And then gets the irony…
Report Post »stage9
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 5:28pmUm, just a simple yet astute inquiry….where is said artist CASHING HIS CHECKS??
Another example of how liberals are morons!
Report Post »Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 5:24pmAnarchist artist and most likely a socialist supporter of the Obama administration; this man is going to find more trouble in the future than many can understand — he is one of the multitude of “useful idiots” being played as pawns and disposed of when the final takers of power consolidate if they do win power and control in the end.
Report Post »http://artinphoenix.com/gallery/grimm (cat folk art)
randy
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 5:22pmNo talent (even hate to call this art, or him an artist)
Report Post »I painted better in 3rd grade with finger paints LOL
Anonymous T. Irrelevant
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 5:13pmThat’s art? My 2 year old niece can finger-paint better than that, and they are much more peaceful.
Report Post »geonj
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 5:07pmhe hates capitalism, but he loves the money. go figure. lefty hypocracy?
Report Post »Nlitend1
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 5:23pmyou hate the president but love america
Report Post »IntheKnowOG
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 5:29pmNot so nlitend are you……That’s an apples to orange logical equivalencey argument. Not logically valid sir/ma’am.
Report Post »Lumen
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 5:05pmWow really?
Looks a bit Terrorist in nature to me… Seems like he doesnt realize that banks (Not including the fed reserve) are necessary for a civil society. Sure there are things I dont like about them. I dont like how I HAVE TO DEPOSIT MONEY in them from jobs in order to get paid. i dont like how there is no competition and how the Govt can seize your money from them. I especially dont like how they dont pay out any interest rates on savings now (if you are 40 or over, you remember 5 to 10% intrest gains on savings accounts that lead to retirements!). Nothing on the earth bothers me more about my bank than the fact that I am forced to deposit my money from a job to get paid and the bank has no security for it, in other words, it should buy gold or silver or some sort of security to back my savings in the event of economic troubles, robbery, or fire or something. It kills me how they take my work paychecks and invest the money and give me nothing in return. 0.0025% interest? are you kidding? really?
The federal reserve is another story. To be honest if it burnt we would all be better off. The Govt should get tax money FOR FREE. We the citizens pay it and its not right to have a middle man sit there and collect our taxes from us and charge the govt 4% interest to use tax money. thats completely stupid and can be done away with. Our Congress should have direct access to tax money we pay without interest or fees period. Burn it to the ground.
Report Post »WhatsYerProblem
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 5:02pmYour unpaid editor has seen the following errors:
…police told told Schaefer that (Too many “told’s”)
anti-capitalsm (check spelling)
Keiser referred Schaefer as the “Cezanne of Arson.“ Schaefer countered ”Maybe the Monet.” (Should be “referred to Schaefer”) (Should be a comma after “countered”)
And so the question remains: are Schaefer’s paintings a case of art imitating life, or life imitating art, in the not-too-distant future? (I thought the question was is this an incitement to violence or arson?)
Anyway, keep up the good work. You’re getting better!
Report Post »IntheKnowOG
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 4:58pmKind of like Michael Moore (the fat pig) decrying capitalism while raking in millions from his idiot disciples. Or Al Gore living in a 20000 sq ft mansion and flying on private jets (oh schnikees, he’s a JET OWNER!!!!). Or, any other libocrite who uses class warfare and lefty issues to rake in the dough. Liberalism is a mental disorder.
Report Post »Lumen
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 4:53pmWow Really?
I dont agree necessarily about how we HAVE TO DEPOSIT our money in order to get paid from a job, but I do see how banks are necessary in a civil society….
I would feel better if banks were more competitive and less “Fee’ish”
Report Post »IntheKnowOG
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 4:54pmTry a credit union…..
Report Post »Starkadder
Posted on September 13, 2011 at 7:50pmMy workplace has instituted a tree huggy “paper free” workplace. All employees are REQUIRED to use direct deposit.
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