Last month, The Art of Banksy exhibition, which arrived in Sydney in September, announced it would be extending its pop-up showing of works by the British street art megastar until December 1, to meet overwhelming demand for tickets.
Unfortunately, organisers of the popular show clearly hadn’t bank(sy)ed on one unforeseen hurdle: Sydney’s warming weather in the run-up to summer. In a statement issued this morning, the team behind The Art of Banksy, led by British art dealer Steve Lazarides, cited “heatwave concerns” as the reason behind the exhibition's immediate closure.
“The collection of artworks on display in the exhibition’s temporary marquee structure have to be very carefully climate controlled,” the statement continues. “This can no longer be guaranteed due to the heatwave, which is forecast to continue over the coming weeks.”
While severe drought and ‘catastrophic’ bushfire conditions have been a major concern throughout NSW in recent days and weeks, the assertion that Sydney is experiencing a heatwave may raise the eyebrows of meteorologists. A heatwave constitutes three or more consecutive days of unusually high maximum and minimum temperatures, but while there are isolated days where temperatures are expected to exceed November’s average high of 24 degrees, no heatwave conditions are forecast within the next week.
Whereas purpose-built galleries are commonly equipped with sophisticated climate control systems, The Art of Banksy’s pop-up exhibition space in the Entertainment Quarter has been constructed from marquees and shipping containers, which are more susceptible to changes in temperature and other inclement conditions.
Organisers have pledged that patrons who have tickets to see the show from today, November 13, until the show’s intended closure on December 1, who purchased tickets by credit or debit card, will be refunded in full, including ticket insurance premiums where relevant.