The famous street artist has been charged over “unauthorised artworks” created in Brisbane.

World-renowned street and installation artist Anthony Lister has been found guilty of wilful damage by graffiti after creating a series of unauthorised artworks around Brisbane city. Known as “Brisbane’s Banksy”, his work has sold for tens of thousands of dollars and appears in the 2013 list of Complex Art and Design’s 50 most influential street artists of all time. International stars including Hugh Jackman and Pharrell Williams have purchased Lister’s work for their private collections.

However, Brisbane’s city council doesn’t value the art to the degree that Jackman does, having taken Lister to court on charges of wilful damage at sites including two Fortitude Valley walls and a skate board park wall in Paddington. Lister argued that he didn’t intend to cause damage, and rather meant his pieces as a form of blessing. “It wasn’t in any sort of condition to concern me that my gift wouldn’t be well received,” he said to the Guardian, regarding his painting of a fire hose box. “That’s enough grounds for me as an educated visual artist with a passion for cultural progression to make the educated decision that a beautification blessing needs to take place.”

His graffiti career took off in 2000 when the council’s then deputy mayor, David Hinchliffe, invited Lister to add colourful paintings to traffic signal boxes around the city. “We should be celebrating the fact Brisbane has produced such an internationally acclaimed artist,” Hinchliffe told the court this week.

 One of Lister’s works in the process of being painted over by Brisbane Council

Chairman of the council’s lifestyle committee Krista Adams says the council is a strong supporter of public art, but that the debate is about whether it is “acceptable to paint another person’s private property without their knowledge or permission.” Lister was found guilty, and ordered to pay the city council $440 to cover restitution costs. No conviction will be recorded, but he will need to perform five hours of community service with the council’s graffiti removal service. Upon leaving the Brisbane magistrates court, Lister handed a portrait to Magistrate Barry Cosgrove that he’d sketched over his two-day hearing. Cosgrave accepted the gift, joking that he has “bigger jowls than that”, but said he would check with Chief Magistrate Ray Rinaudo as to whether he could keep it.

Lister’s run-in with the Brisbane council began in May 2014 when the council cleaned a portrait Lister had painted on an alleyway door. In an interview with Fairfax Media at the time, Lister said the door could have sold for $10,000. “I hate having to say that but it’s the only thing that puts things into context for some of these people,” he said.  In November of the same year, Lister was charged with 12 counts of wilful damage dating back to 2009.

Lister posted a statement to social media following the conviction, saying that “There is something wrong with the law if the magistrate can appreciate the value of my work but still find me guilty of willful damage. The legal fight today and yesterday was about my work, but in the bigger picture, I was fighting for so many other artists that are facing prison sentences for acts of creativity. The legislation concerning graffiti and willful damage as a result of creativity is in need of a drastic and immediate revision. My ‘No conviction’ will allow me to continue travelling and showing my artworks but I am still very disappointed to be found guilty of graffiti. Sadly the loser, in this case, is Brisbane.”

Lister’s work is permanently exhibited at the National Gallery of Australia, and has been featured in Vogue magazine. He has an upcoming exhibition at a secret location in Melbourne, which will run from 3 to 12 March in collaboration with Blackartprojects.