Graffiti artist Banksy has created a new artwork on the wall of a refugee camp in Calais, France depicting the late Apple CEO, Steve Jobs, as a migrant.
The work in the so-called ‘Jungle refugee camp’ shows Jobs, the son of a Syrian migrant, in his typical black polo neck carrying a bin bag full of possessions and an original Apple computer.
In a rare public statement, Banksy said, “We’re often led to believe migration is a drain on the country’s resources but Steve Jobs was the son of a Syrian migrant.”
“Apple is the world’s most profitable company, it pays over $7 billion a year in taxes – and it only exists because they allowed in a young man from Homs,” he added.
The artwork is painted near tents and shares the wall with another piece of graffiti which reads: “Nobody deserves to live this way!”
The camp in Calais is home to about 7,000 migrants and refugees, the majority from Syria, Afghanistan and Eritrea.
The graffiti is part of a series of works Banksy has created in response to the refugee crisis while in Calais. He covered several walls across the French port with related graffiti, including an adaptation of Theodore Gericault’s Raft of the Medusa, highlighting a luxury yacht which has the message.
Earlier this summer, Banksy initiated a “bemusement” park in Weston-Super-Mare featured an installation of boats filled with bodies. On the last night of Dismaland, Banksy also invited Pussy Riot to debut their song which criticises the global failure to help the migrants reaching Europe.
Since the park’s closure earlier in September this year, Banksy has been
shipping leftover infrastructure from Dismaland to help construct
emergency housing for the 7,000 migrants, mainly from Syria, Eritrea and
Afghanistan, who now live in Calais. (BBC)
Comments About This Article
Please fill the fields below.