Banksy, Pussy Riot, Charlie Hebdo: A Week of Protest Art

A week of politically charged art saw Banksy's charity auction hacked by Russian attackers, Pussy Riot staging a performance in a Los Angeles gallery, and Charlie Hebdo publishing new caricatures of Iranian leaders. Banksy's limited-edition prints, sold to raise funds for Ukraine, were targeted by 3,500 fake registrations out of over one million requests. Each print, priced at £5,000, features a rat sliding down a box marked 'FRAGILE' and is uniquely scratched by the artist. The Pussy Riot collective will present 'Putin's Ashes' at Jeffrey Deitch gallery in Los Angeles from January 27 to February 3, 2023. The film, created by founder Nadya Tolokonnikova, documents a performance where 12 women in lingerie burned a 3x3 meter portrait of Vladimir Putin. Ashes from that performance are incorporated into objects displayed alongside the film. Charlie Hebdo, which suffered a terrorist attack in 2015, published new cartoons mocking Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and other clerics, prompting threats from Revolutionary Guards commander Hossein Salami, who warned of revenge against the magazine.