From an anthropological point of view, art is trad...

From an anthropological point of view, art is traditionally characterized nowadays as a system of communication that either reinforces or questions social values. With his work, Bansky actually violates these values ​​and rules of classical/typical "high art", which usually reach the gallery primarily for rich or high-ranking people. Instead, he chose a simple wall on a simple street, where every "ordinary" person has access to it, regardless of status and without fear that he would never look into the gallery precisely because of his status. He also uses graffiti, which was not so completely "officially" or openly accepted in society and was rather perceived as an element of a low group, of subjects or at the working class level. He used this method to clearly express his criticism of the division of society into low and high culture, that art is not uniform, it is not a fixed universe that should usually belong to the elite, but on the contrary, to everyone. Thanks to templates, he can create quickly and his works are easily spread and visible.

At the heart of this entire work is a clear depiction of the gendered, unfair division of labor. As already mentioned, the main focus is on a woman in the role of a housekeeper, with all her clothes on, a traditional maid who sweeps dust under the carpet. Bansky points out how society stereotypically perceives women as "tools" who do work that is not always visible and is often overlooked - this includes not only cleaning, but also childcare. All these activities are perceived as self-evident by women, but at the same time no one values ​​or appreciates them much, because they actually happen "inside" and are too strongly covered by external aspects. Ironically, one could say that no one notices or is unaware that it is the basic building block from which other things can then develop, which we can see on the outside and see it as a nice, finished job - no chaos or problem under the hood. Bonsky thus points out how much society relies on others - in this case, women - and has a tendency to hide, conceal, silence everything and then not even notice it and it easily gets away with it.

This also leads to another argument - social stratification. Stratification implies that society is divided into layers - a simple division into poor and rich. The painting depicts a white wall, which represents the rich part of society, and behind it we actually find out that there is a black wall, reflecting the poor layer. The white wall clearly represents the "pretty" side, which is neat, clean, perhaps even a sign of luxury, because wealth has the ability to keep itself clean and undefiled. While the black part of the wall is full of dust, which the maid sweeps away and shows problems and harsh reality. People actually have to literally endure all the dirt that the rich throw at them, and at the same time, dominance is manifested, because the white wall or sheet is bigger and stronger and manages to keep the secrets and dirt hidden. The cleaning lady herself plays a shameful role, doing the dirty dirty work and as if she is forced to throw dirt on herself and her peers, just so that the higher authorities do not punish her and the rich do not have to confront the "dirt" that their lifestyle or political decisions produce.

In conclusion, it can be said that Banksy's work carries a deep cultural critique. It synthesizes the anthropology of art with the analysis of social inequality and demonstrates how gender and class intersect in the production of a "pure" social reality. By forcing the viewer to pay attention, Banksy makes them realize that something is somehow hidden behind society and that the work of people at the bottom or lower is usually invisible and that everything is simply in black and white. In doing so, he wants to reveal the invisibility of the working class and question the stratified foundations of modern society.