Banksy's "Better Out Than In" Comes to a Halt in New York

Banksy‘s ongoing “Better Out Than In” has come to a screeching halt in New York City. After kicking off with the onset of October, Banksy’s month-long “street residency” has apparently made the controversial British street artist’s arrest a top priority of sorts for the NYPD and its legendary “Vandal Squad” – the department’s cops that focus primarily on the pursuit of graffiti artists. Mayor Bloomberg even touched on the subject at a press conference earlier in the month:

… graffiti does ruin people’s property and it’s a sign of decay and loss of control. Art is art, and nobody’s a bigger supporter of the arts than I am. I just think there are some places for art and there are some places [not for] art. And you running up to somebody’s property or public property and defacing it is not my definition of art. Or it may be art, but it should not be permitted. And I think that’s exactly what the law says.

Although there have been no indications that Banksy has actually been arrested, his site was updated this morning with a simple message that today’s installment of the ongoing city-wide exhibition had indeed been cancelled due to police activity. Stay tuned for more from “Better Out Than In” should it resume tomorrow or in the days ahead.