Bad Meaning Good
Mixed Media

Bad Meaning Good is one of Banksy’s earliest images, produced in 2002 and released as a signed original canvas in an edition size of 4. The canvas was created as a part of a series which Banksy worked on between 2002 and 2003 in which he depicted four different album covers for the Bad Meaning Good music compilations. The compilations were of tracks chosen by different artists and recorded on CD or vinyl.

For the cover of Bad Meaning Good Volume 1, Banksy painted a large red ‘X’ and used a stencil to add a monochromatic machine gun over it. The cover of Bad Meaning Good Volume 2, also made in 2002, shows a grey ‘X’ and a black and white stencilled military vehicle.

The machine gun  can be interpreted as a symbol of control or authority and Banksy uses the image to subtly poke fun at the state and convey his anti-establishment values. The machine gun depicted in Bad Meaning Good Volume 1 is painted with a huge pair of shoes, reminiscent of clown shoes as if this weapon is a joke or a fake.