Banksy's cool, but don't forget the little guys

Everyone's excited about Banksy coming to Toronto, including myself. Torontoist.com has been avidly reporting on spottings around the city of art believed to be the work of the great British graffiti artist himself.

It certainly would give Toronto's streets a little more cred if they got Banksy's sticker of approval, but I hope Banksy's fame will shed a little focus on our city's many talented graffiti artists rather than act as a publicity stunt.

As many west-enders can attest, my favourite part of the subway ride downtown is between Keele and High Park stations, where I admire the block of beautiful art at the back of the buildings. Imagine if the entire subway ride were like that, with swirling colour and punchy urbane images cascading into the horizon. Here's a great video looking at the images up-close.

Dan Bergeron, a native of Montreal, is probably the closest equivalent to Banksy in Canada, having done work all over the world. His most famous recent work in Toronto is his collection of large posters on buildings in Regent Park. When the City announced the public housing project was going to be redeveloped, Bergeron started this art project to showcase the faces of the neighbourhood in protest of its "revitalization" - which most people interpret as a euphemism for gentrification. It's kind of an alternative - and uniquely Toronto - take on Banksy's artistic activism.

I'm hoping Banksy's presence will inspire more street art in the city. It's not likely the city will relax its vandalism laws, but maybe Banksy's hype can teach us to appreciate the brilliant graffiti we already have.