By Brie Schwartz
(CNN) -- British graffiti artist Banksy has launched an art exhibition in Bethlehem that he hopes will focus attention on the poverty of the West Bank and draw tourists to the traditional birthplace of Christianity.
Banksy hopes his provocative graffiti will raise awareness of the poverty in Bethlehem.
As part of the project, Banksy has adorned the controversial security barrier around the West Bank town with spray paint and plaster works of art in a comment on the Israel-Palestinian conflict.
Israel says the purpose of the barrier is to prevent terrorist attacks being launched from the West Bank. Palestinian leaders however say the barrier amounts to an illegitimate land grab by Israelis, setting unilateral borders for an eventual Palestinian state.
The new exhibition, called "Santa's Ghetto Bethlehem 2007," is a collaboration by artists who say they are trying to revitalize tourism to Bethlehem and "offer the ink-stained hand of friendship to ordinary people in an extraordinary situation."
Banksy's sketches on the security barrier flow towards Manger Square, across from the Church of the Nativity, where Christians believe Jesus was born.
His images include a dove wearing a bullet-proof vest, a young girl in a frilly pink dress frisking a soldier and a donkey being checked for its identity papers.
According to the Web site for Santa's Ghetto, Banksy thought he was making an ironic commentary with the donkey picture but locals told him the animals are frequently asked for ID papers.
Santa's Ghetto typically operates during the month of December out of a small store on Oxford Street in London, where underground artists showcase their work.
Banksy who started the initiative six years ago says: "I felt the spirit of Christmas was being lost. It was becoming increasingly uncommercialized and more and more to do with religion so we decided to open our own shop and sell pointless stuff you didn't need."
His exhibition in Bethlehem is rife with the same satirical sentiments. Beyond the barrier graffiti, the work of Santa's Ghetto's diverse artists spread across three floors of a building in Manger Square.
Inside, examples include a painting by Palestinian artist Suleiman Mansour in which a man carries the city of Jerusalem on his back, and London artist Peter Kennard's montage of dollar bills printed on pages from the Jerusalem Post. Proceeds from any Santa's Ghetto sales go to charity.
Don't Miss
Santa's Ghetto
Bleak times in Bethlehem
U.N. court rules West Bank barrier illegal
Little is known about Banksy other than that he was born in Bristol, western England. Collections of his original work, which attract the likes of Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt, have sold for more than $1 million (almost £500,000).
Banksy's previous political statements have included hanging a picture of a cave man pushing a shopping cart in the British Museum, and placing a doll of a Guantanamo Bay detainee in Disneyland. The doll was removed but the "primitive" portrait became a part of the British Museum's permanent collection.
Tourism -- even in the traditional Christmas peak season -- has been hard hit in recent years with Israeli checkpoints keeping most of the local Palestinians in and all but the most determined tourists out. As a result levels of unemployment are high.
Speaking through the Web site, Banksy says tourists need not fear visiting the West Bank. "It would do good if more people came to see the situation here for themselves.
"If it is safe enough for a bunch of sissy artists then it's safe enough for anyone."
By Rebecca Harrison
BETHLEHEM, West Bank (Reuters) - Graffiti artist Banksy is trying to bring cheer and boost tourism in Bethlehem this Christmas with a series of subversive murals in the town revered as Jesus' birthplace.
The elusive street artist has painted six provocative new images -- including a dove of peace strapped with a bulletproof vest and a young girl with pigtails frisking an Israeli soldier -- on buildings around the West Bank town.
Banksy, who has achieved cult status for his edgy satirical images, has also converted a fast food shop opposite Bethlehem's Church of the Nativity into an art gallery showing work by artists from the Palestinian territories and abroad.
The artist's images have fetched hundreds of thousands of dollars in auctions and his customers include Hollywood siren Angelina Jolie. But Banksy keeps his real identity secret and almost never gives interviews. Other artists exhibiting in Bethlehem said they hoped the show would draw attention to life in the occupied West Bank and help forge links between local and international artists.
"It's important for people to come to Bethlehem and actually see what's happening rather than just doing the usual art collector thing and making a deal over the phone," British artist Peter Kennard told Reuters.
Bethlehem residents say military checkpoints and Israel's West Bank barrier, which cuts into Palestinian land, is stifling tourism and damaging Bethlehem's economy.
Banksy made headlines in 2005 by painting a series of playful images on the Palestinian side of the barrier, which Israel says it built to keep out suicide bombers.
The new images are more eye-catching. Pilgrims arriving in Bethlehem for Christmas will see a huge mural of a dove on the side of a house riddled with bullet holes. The dove faces an Israeli military watchtower and is wearing a bullet-proof vest.
(CNN) -- British graffiti artist Banksy has launched an art exhibition in Bethlehem that he hopes will focus attention on the poverty of the West Bank and draw tourists to the traditional birthplace of Christianity.
Banksy hopes his provocative graffiti will raise awareness of the poverty in Bethlehem.
As part of the project, Banksy has adorned the controversial security barrier around the West Bank town with spray paint and plaster works of art in a comment on the Israel-Palestinian conflict.
Israel says the purpose of the barrier is to prevent terrorist attacks being launched from the West Bank. Palestinian leaders however say the barrier amounts to an illegitimate land grab by Israelis, setting unilateral borders for an eventual Palestinian state.
The new exhibition, called "Santa's Ghetto Bethlehem 2007," is a collaboration by artists who say they are trying to revitalize tourism to Bethlehem and "offer the ink-stained hand of friendship to ordinary people in an extraordinary situation."
Banksy's sketches on the security barrier flow towards Manger Square, across from the Church of the Nativity, where Christians believe Jesus was born.
His images include a dove wearing a bullet-proof vest, a young girl in a frilly pink dress frisking a soldier and a donkey being checked for its identity papers.
According to the Web site for Santa's Ghetto, Banksy thought he was making an ironic commentary with the donkey picture but locals told him the animals are frequently asked for ID papers.
Santa's Ghetto typically operates during the month of December out of a small store on Oxford Street in London, where underground artists showcase their work.
Banksy who started the initiative six years ago says: "I felt the spirit of Christmas was being lost. It was becoming increasingly uncommercialized and more and more to do with religion so we decided to open our own shop and sell pointless stuff you didn't need."
His exhibition in Bethlehem is rife with the same satirical sentiments. Beyond the barrier graffiti, the work of Santa's Ghetto's diverse artists spread across three floors of a building in Manger Square.
Inside, examples include a painting by Palestinian artist Suleiman Mansour in which a man carries the city of Jerusalem on his back, and London artist Peter Kennard's montage of dollar bills printed on pages from the Jerusalem Post. Proceeds from any Santa's Ghetto sales go to charity.
Don't Miss
Santa's Ghetto
Bleak times in Bethlehem
U.N. court rules West Bank barrier illegal
Little is known about Banksy other than that he was born in Bristol, western England. Collections of his original work, which attract the likes of Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt, have sold for more than $1 million (almost £500,000).
Banksy's previous political statements have included hanging a picture of a cave man pushing a shopping cart in the British Museum, and placing a doll of a Guantanamo Bay detainee in Disneyland. The doll was removed but the "primitive" portrait became a part of the British Museum's permanent collection.
Tourism -- even in the traditional Christmas peak season -- has been hard hit in recent years with Israeli checkpoints keeping most of the local Palestinians in and all but the most determined tourists out. As a result levels of unemployment are high.
Speaking through the Web site, Banksy says tourists need not fear visiting the West Bank. "It would do good if more people came to see the situation here for themselves.
"If it is safe enough for a bunch of sissy artists then it's safe enough for anyone."
By Rebecca Harrison
BETHLEHEM, West Bank (Reuters) - Graffiti artist Banksy is trying to bring cheer and boost tourism in Bethlehem this Christmas with a series of subversive murals in the town revered as Jesus' birthplace.
The elusive street artist has painted six provocative new images -- including a dove of peace strapped with a bulletproof vest and a young girl with pigtails frisking an Israeli soldier -- on buildings around the West Bank town.
Banksy, who has achieved cult status for his edgy satirical images, has also converted a fast food shop opposite Bethlehem's Church of the Nativity into an art gallery showing work by artists from the Palestinian territories and abroad.
The artist's images have fetched hundreds of thousands of dollars in auctions and his customers include Hollywood siren Angelina Jolie. But Banksy keeps his real identity secret and almost never gives interviews. Other artists exhibiting in Bethlehem said they hoped the show would draw attention to life in the occupied West Bank and help forge links between local and international artists.
"It's important for people to come to Bethlehem and actually see what's happening rather than just doing the usual art collector thing and making a deal over the phone," British artist Peter Kennard told Reuters.
Bethlehem residents say military checkpoints and Israel's West Bank barrier, which cuts into Palestinian land, is stifling tourism and damaging Bethlehem's economy.
Banksy made headlines in 2005 by painting a series of playful images on the Palestinian side of the barrier, which Israel says it built to keep out suicide bombers.
The new images are more eye-catching. Pilgrims arriving in Bethlehem for Christmas will see a huge mural of a dove on the side of a house riddled with bullet holes. The dove faces an Israeli military watchtower and is wearing a bullet-proof vest.
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