Pepe Martinez on Banksy - Fraud or Genius?


A lecture presented by The Arts Society Ealing

Banksy, Cargo, Rivington St, Shoreditch
Banksy, Cargo, Rivington St, Shoreditch

March 19, 2025

The next talk to be hosted by The Arts Society Ealing will be given by Pepe Martinez on the subject “Banksy – Fraud or Genius?”

The lecture will trace the story of Banksy’s humble beginnings as a tagger on the streets of Bristol in the 1980’s to one of the most recognisable names in the art world. It will examine the reasons behind his incredible rise, looking at some of his famous stunts, and discuss what his influence has been on the art market today and look at what his legacy, if any, might be.

Pepe Martinez qualified as a London blue badge tourist guide in 2011 and has specialised in the graffiti and street art of East London. He leads London walks and also organises practical spray sessions, giving groups an opportunity to have a go at creating their own works.

This talk is at 7:30pm on Monday 24 March at St Barnabas Church Hall, Pitshanger Lane, Ealing W5 1QG.

Visitors are welcome to attend at £8 per lecture (£3 for students); payment can be made in cash or by card on the evening.

The Arts Society Ealing belongs to the large umbrella organisation, The Arts Society, previously known as the National Association of Decorative and Fine Arts Societies (NADFAS), which was founded in 1968. The local Society has a membership of around 140.

The Arts Society Ealing holds 10 lectures a year and more information can be found by visiting its web site.

Like Reading Articles Like This? Help Us Produce More

This site remains committed to providing local community news and public interest journalism.

Articles such as the one above are integral to what we do. We aim to feature as much as possible on local societies, charities based in the area, fundraising efforts by residents, community-based initiatives and even helping people find missing pets.

We’ve always done that and won’t be changing, in fact we’d like to do more.

However, the readership that these stories generates is often below that needed to cover the cost of producing them. Our financial resources are limited and the local media environment is intensely competitive so there is a constraint on what we can do.

We are therefore asking our readers to consider offering financial support to these efforts. Any money given will help support community and public interest news and the expansion of our coverage in this area.

A suggested monthly payment is £8 but we would be grateful for any amount for instance if you think this site offers the equivalent value of a subscription to a daily printed newspaper you may wish to consider £20 per month. If neither of these amounts is suitable for you then contact info@neighbournet.com and we can set up an alternative. All payments are made through a secure web site.

One-off donations are also appreciated. Choose The Amount You Wish To Contribute.

If you do support us in this way we’d be interested to hear what kind of articles you would like to see more of on the site – send your suggestions to the editor.

For businesses we offer the chance to be a corporate sponsor of community content on the site. For £30 plus VAT per month you will be the designated sponsor of at least one article a month with your logo appearing if supplied. If there is a specific community group or initiative you’d like to support we can make sure your sponsorship is featured on related content for a one off payment of £50 plus VAT. All payments are made through a secure web site.