Drone Used by Graffiti ‘Artist’ to Deface Kendall Jenner Ad in NYC
To launch the aerosol attack, he attached a can of red spray paint to a drone and blasted the image of Jenner’s face via remote control.
NEW YORK CITY – Graffiti “artists” are flying drones to deface some of the New York City’s tallest and most expensive billboards, according to the New York Post.
The newspaper reported that local tagger KATSU used the high-tech gadget to spray-paint a six-story Calvin Klein billboard featuring model Kendall Jenner in Soho Wednesday night (April 29). Check out the video below.
To launch the aerosol attack, he attached a can of red spray paint to a drone and blasted the image of Jenner’s face at Houston and Lafayette streets via remote control, he told Wired magazine.
“It was a bit tense. It turned out surprisingly well. It’s exciting to see its first potential use as a device for vandalism,” KATSU told the magazine.
Graffiti drones give vandals easy – and illegal – access to targets once nearly impossible to reach without climbing or rappelling, he said. But if drone-tagging catches on, it could mean more expensive vandalism cleanup costs – for “art” that nobody seems to understand, the newspaper reported.
“It looks like a mistake. It doesn’t seem like [KATSU] has a lot of experience. He messed up the billboard. Calvin Klein paid a lot of money to put it up there. I don’t think it’s a good idea,” said Alex Krechko, 25, a Brooklyn physical therapy assistant, looking up at the sloppy streaks.
The Soho billboard is one of the city’s biggest and best-known. A few months ago, it featured an image of a shirtless Justin Bieber wearing Calvin Klein tighty whities. That image was tagged in yellow spray paint, an employee at the nearby Happy Paws pet shop told the newspaper.
Police said they were aware of the graffiti but wouldn’t immediately reveal if they were planning to take action against the admitted vandal.
KATSU is gearing up to release a more “user-friendly” version of the graffiti drone, he told Wired. KATSU created “drone-painting” canvases featured in a Silicon Valley art show last year.
If you enjoyed this article and want to receive more valuable industry content like this, click here to sign up for our FREE digital newsletters!
Related Content
Security Is Our Business, Too
For professionals who recommend, buy and install all types of electronic security equipment, a free subscription to Commercial Integrator + Security Sales & Integration is like having a consultant on call. You’ll find an ideal balance of technology and business coverage, with installation tips and techniques for products and updates on how to add to your bottom line.
A FREE subscription to the top resource for security and integration industry will prove to be invaluable.
