Pranksters - The Art of the Prank

November 25, 2025

AI With a Cause

“Art-dropping” gets easier.

“Prankster With a Cause Sneaks AI Artwork Into UK Museum ,” by Rhea Nayyar, Hyperallergic, November 12, 2025.

Artist Elias Marrow said he wanted to draw attention to rising hunger and poverty in the country.

An unsolicited digital print hung undetected for several hours on the walls of the National Museum Cardiff in Wales after it was installed by a conceptual artist in the museum’s contemporary art wing. Later revealed to be AI-generated, Elias Marrow’s “Empty Plate” (2024) bamboozled museum visitors and staff alike, as no one could explain its presence.

The print emulates an oil portrait of a nondescript young boy in a school uniform, holding a bare plate on his lap with a dour expression. Per the artist’s website, “It is unclear whether [the boy] waits to be fed, punished, or simply forgotten.” While the subject appears to have the correct number of fingers, other aspects of the painting, including the jumbled alphabet on his uniform logo and the overall yellowish tinge to the work, are undeniable evidence of generative AI — though Marrow’s accompanying wall text does not mention it. Read the whole article here.

November 12, 2025November 13, 2025

Bring on the Clowns!

Using the power of humor and satire to de-escalate confrontations.

“Why people are really wearing silly costumes at protests against Trump,” by The Conversation, AlterNet, October 24, 2025.

Three frogs, a shark, a unicorn and a Tyrannosaurus rex dance in front of a line of heavily armoured police in riot gear.

Over the past few weeks, activists taking part in protests against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) across the United States have donned inflatable animal costumes. The aim is to disrupt the Trump administration’s claim that the protests are violent “hate America” rallies.

The result is a sight to behold, with many encounters between police and protestors going viral.

Whether they know it or not, these costumed activists are contributing to a rich history of using humour and dress to mobilise against and challenge power. Read the whole article here.

September 19, 2025September 19, 2025

WALK RIGHT! Walks the Line

We need more militarization, more rules, less 1st Amendment protection and definitely more fear in our city streets. We need to bring back WALK RIGHT!

Back in 1984, when mercenary vigilantes like the Guardian Angels were “reclaiming” NYC subways, Joey Skaggs launched WALK RIGHT! an ad hoc group of vigilante sidewalk etiquette enforcers who patrolled the streets to make New York a better place to live and walk.

Here’s a short tease from Joey Skaggs: WALK RIGHT! oral history film.

WALK RIGHT published 66 rules for walking, including:
*Pedestrians must choose one lane and stay in it.
*No changing directions except at designated areas.
*No stopping unless in the shopping lane.
*No eating, gesticulating, or umbrellas held lower than 5’10”.

CNN and local news covered it as serious public policy. But it was satire then—and it is satire now.

NOTE: Social media influencers have recently “invented” ways to tame our unruly pedestrians, like, Matt Bass with “Bad Walkers” and Cameron Roh who is rating walkers in New York City.

They are to be forgiven because they weren’t born when WALK RIGHT! ruled the New York City streets. And they can’t be expected to do any research that might deter them from promoting a great idea to gain sponsorship $$ or eyeballs for their products.