You can live in art (architect R.M. Schindler's work is often an object of desire in L.A.) if you have the means.

But for an otherwise homeless guy named Tachowa Covington, artful shelter came to him for free. And then it was taken away.

Turns out that Banksy-tagged tank near Malibu was the man's house, and now that it's been hauled off and put up for sale, Covington might be living al fresco, according to Vandalog (via LAist).

Vandalog reports that he lived in the tank, on which the famous British artist stenciled the words “this looks a bit like an elephant” for seven years, and that he was seen there as recently as September.

LAist puts the tank off PCH near the line between Santa Monica and Pacific Palisades/Los Angeles (not, as we said previously, in Malibu).

Banksy was in town last month for the Academy Awards, where his documentary Exit Through the Gift Shop was up for best documentary (it didn't win).

His work was spotted around town, torn down, stolen and removed.

Now it looks like it's being sold as well.

Vandalog wonders if the words Banksy stenciled reference the idea of the big elephant in the room — homelessness — and suggests maybe the artist knew someone lived there.

As such, maybe Covington and the piece are inseparable, and its value should only be considered in the context of his inhabitancy — and its place near the sea.

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