Whitewashed again.
The artist behind the iconic — and controversial — “HOPE” poster of Barack Obama is in the middle of another dispute.
This one involves a mural that Shepard Fairey created at the corner of Bowery and Houston Street, once the site of a different pop-art masterpiece.
The Department of Buildings says Fairey’s mural, which blends poster designs with political commentary, was painted on a wall that had been constructed without permits beside a building.
But even if the building’s owner had complied with the law and got the necessary permits, Fairey would still be out of luck because, according to city officials, the mural isn’t art — it’s advertising.
Fairey’s new art show, “May Day,” is currently on display at Deitch Projects in SoHo, a fact prominently promoted on the mural. But the artist disputes the notion that his mural is a giant billboard.
“This is a work of art, not an advertisement,” Fairey said in a written statement, “and it is disappointing and shortsighted that city officials want to ignore the rich history and role that public art has played in revitalizing this particular area of lower Manhattan.”
The city’s Environmental Control Board will rule next month on the fate of the 24-foot-high, 60-foot-long wall.
Building owner Tony Goldman said he will do whatever is necessary to comply with the city’s rules — short of tearing the wall down.
“That wall is the last of the old culture,” Goldman said. “Each of those murals that I put up there are for the benefit of the public. I don’t make any money off it. It’s all artistic. You may not like it, but I’m going to put the best of the best up there.”
Goldman said the wall is more than 25 years old, and he questioned the timing of the city’s violation notice.
“There’s not a lot of building going on in New York,” Goldman said. Somebody needs to keep busy.”
Fairey said he chose the spot to pay homage to pop artist Keith Haring, whose 1984 “Day-Glo” mural was painted in the same location.
Fairey is best known for the red-and-blue-tinted Obama poster, which generated controversy after The Associated Press said the artist appropriated one of its pictures to create the poster.