By Chilli Pepper
Pepperoni Observational News Corp is a Peppercorn series that delivers satirical news and reporting via Peppercorn’s Facebook page and biannual magazine, and definitely has no affiliation with Woroni or the ANU Observer and any allusions to affiliations with these news outlets are false and misleading and should not be made or considered.
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Library desk graffiti artist is not an artist and really just needs psychological help
Art collectors from across Canberra are bidding at an auction for several desks that were found in the Law, Menzies, and Chifley Libraries. The desks feature knife-etched drawings, long conversations with line replies in permanent marker, and either disturbing or genius-level quotes about life and the world.
“It’s Outsider Art,” said one unnamed art collector from Sydney. “These are the thought leaders of the future, so it’s like investing in Banksy’s high school toilet graffiti before he hit the big leagues with Dismaland – it’s a goldmine!”
Despite the fanfare surrounding the works of these anonymous library desk graffiti artists, there is a simple reason why the works exist.
We spoke to one library desk graffiti artist under the condition of anonymity, who we spotted etching with a cheap Target steak knife.
“It’s quite simple really,” they said. “I don’t really want to be here, my parents made me come here and invested a lot into my education.” They added, “I need to find ways to express my inner psychological tension.”
The graffiti artist polished off a mock Mona Lisa holding wads of cash alongside the quote, “dreams are Da Vinci and da money”, before etching responses to several line conversations on a number of different desks.
One of the desks from this particular library desk graffiti artist sold for up to $125,000, which the ANU have said they will be re-investing in a new golf course for university executives.
When we asked the ANU whether the profit from the auction should be reinvested in improving ANU counselling services, we received no response.