One of Banksy’s artworks, demonstrating his satirical approach to graffiti
The graffiti artist Banksy emerged from the Bristol underground scene in the late ‘90s and early 2000s, and his wryly humorous, politically-driven street art has continued to grow in popularity ever since then. Even though Banksy is a pseudonym and his real identity remains a mystery, he has undoubtedly become one of the most interesting and celebrated artists of the 21st century.
By definition, many of Banksy’s murals are temporary, often being stolen, painted over, or removed by officials soon after their creation. His prints, however, are more permanent, and they account for almost 80% of the artist’s work sold at auction. The majority of Banksy prints fetch between £10,000 and £50,000, and many reach even higher prices.
Although Banksy’s identity is a fiercely-guarded secret, it is possible to find out a little about the artist from his works, publicity stunts, and activism in different fields. Therefore, below are eight things you might not have known about Banksy.
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There Are Many Theories About His Identity
Banksy is as elusive as he is famous, and his real identity remains well-hidden from the world. Despite this, theories about the ‘real Banksy’ abound, including suggestions that his name is Robin Gunningham, or that he is, in fact, Robert Del Naja (also known as 3D), a fellow graffiti artist from Bristol and founding member of the trip hop band Massive Attack. So far, everyone suggested has vehemently denied being Banksy, and speculation is still rife.
His Most Expensive Print Sold For £1.7 million
Girl with Balloon is one of Banksy’s most immediately-recognisable images, and it has been a recurring motif since it first appeared in 2002. Of Banksy’s 20 most expensive prints sold at auction, 13 are versions of Girl with Balloon. One, dating from 2003 and showing a girl with a red balloon, holds the record for Banksy’s most expensive print, having been sold by Sotheby’s in June 2021 for £1.7 million.
And He Shredded A Canvas Version Of It
One of the reasons Girl with Balloon is such a sought-after print is because of a widely-covered publicity stunt organised by Banksy. In 2018, Girl with Balloon made international headlines after a framed canvas version of it was sold at auction. Mere moments after the final hammer fell, the canvas slipped through its frame and was partially shredded by a mechanism the artist had hidden inside it, generating widespread press coverage and raising Banksy’s profile even more.
Banksy responded to the event with a quote often attributed to Picasso: “The urge to destroy is also a creative urge.” Ironically, the shredded canvas (renamed Love is in the Bin) subsequently sold in 2021 for £16 million, more than 18 times its original price.
“Girl with Balloon” renamed “Love in the Bin”
He Has Published Several Books
Banksy’s books feature photographs of his artworks alongside text he has written, which tends to be a combination of musings, stories, and political statements, all underscored by the artist’s provocative tone and dry wit. The cover of Banksy’s best-known book, Wall and Piece, is Love is in the Air, one of his most iconic images and highly-sought after prints.
He Uses Stencils
According to Banksy, when he was 18, he realised he had to “cut [his] painting time in half or give up altogether” after he narrowly escaped being caught by the police – a frequent target of his artworks – whilst graffitiing. His “epiphany” was reached as he hid from them beneath a dumpster truck: he would use stencils. Ever since, he has been able to work faster and more efficiently, and he uses a similar stencilling technique to create his sought-after prints.
He Likes Rats… A Lot
Rats are one of Banksy’s recurring motifs. Just like monkeys, he views them as symbols of the underdog and the dispossessed of society. He once wrote: “They exist without permission. They are hated, hunted and persecuted. They live in quiet desperation among the filth. And yet they are capable of bringing entire civilisations to their knees. If you are dirty, insignificant and unloved then rats are the ultimate role model.”
In fact, Banksy’s affinity for rats goes even further than simply using them in his paintings. Crude Oils was one of Banksy’s early exhibitions, during which the artist displayed 20 versions of amusingly reimagined classic oil paintings. In addition to this, he also released several hundred live rats into the gallery space, and he officially subtitled the exhibition a “Gallery of re-mixed masterpieces, vandalism, and vermin.”
He Doesn’t Just Paint
As he has become more famous, Banksy’s projects have grown in scope; in 2015, he created the Dismaland “bemusement park” in a disused lido in Weston-Super-Mare. The temporary project featured an extraordinary and bizarre range of artworks from Banksy and other artists, and it was billed as “an alternative to the soulless sugar-coated banality of the average family day out.”
Banksy’s second large-scale project was The Walled Off Hotel in Palestine’s West Bank. The hotel was established in 2017, and it is situated opposite the West Bank Wall erected by Israel in the early 2000s. As of the events of the past year, the hotel has been closed until further notice. Whilst it was open, however, it caused significant controversy, with some suggesting it trivialised the suffering of millions of Palestinians. But to many others, the hotel brought much-needed attention to the area, and the numerous murals Banksy has painted in the region (including Love is in the Air) over the years have made his feelings about Israeli occupation of the West Bank very clear.
He’s Pranked Several Major Museums
The Tate, the Louvre, MoMA, the British Museum, and many more have all been subjected to Banksy’s guerilla art tactics in the past. Between 2003 and 2005, Banksy snuck into several world-famous museums using a variety of ingenious disguises. He proceeded to hang his own artworks next to those in the museums’ collections, then recorded how long it was before their dubious provenance was brought to the attention of staff.
Many of Banksy’s pieces were also accompanied by entertaining fake information boards. For instance, a taxidermied rat with a spray can that was installed in the Natural History Museum was described as a “recently discovered” specimen called the “Banksus Militus Vandalus” that was proving “impervious to all modern methods of pest control.” Upon observing people walking away from his museum pieces “looking confused and slightly cheated”, Banksy stated: “I felt like a true modern artist.”
