Seventh Banksy artwork revealed in London
As Banksy continues to surprise Londoners with his ‘London Zoo’ exhibit, a piece of work depicting piranhas on a sentry box in Ludgate Hill appeared on August 11th.
The latest artwork courtesy of Banksy is his seventh to pop up in the English capital in as many days, as his pieces continue to surprise locals in unexpected corners of London. The animal-themed exhibition began on August 5th with a stencil of a goat perched on a ledge just underneath a CCTV camera on Kew Bridge. Following the discovery of the work, Banksy followed the goat piece up with two silhouettes of elephants reaching out to each other across blocked-out windows in Chelsea.
Then, on August 8th, a howling wolf on a satellite dish in Peckham in Banksy’s usual stencil style appeared on Rye Lane. Unfortunately, within a matter of hours, opportunistic locals had taken it down and stolen the lucrative artwork.
On August 9th, it was Wathmamstow’s turn with Banksy unveiling a silhouette of two pelicans eating fish, which is appropriate considering the street artist chose to display the piece above of a Fish and Chips takeaway.
Furthermore, on August 10th, a stretching cat mysteriously appeared on Edgware Road. Despite Banksy claiming responsibility for the art, within hours, it had been taken down from the empty advertising billboard that had been used as a canvas.
Thankfully, it seems the art displayed in Ludgate Hill is here to stay with a spokesperson for the local authorities stating, “We are currently working through options to preserve the artwork.”
At this stage, it remains unknown how much longer the ‘London Zoo’ exhibit is set to continue. While fans have been theorising on the deeper meaning behind the series of artworks, with some speculating on whether it’s a response to the recent far-right riots, that’s not the case, according to a new report.
The Observer claim: “The artist’s vision is simple: the latest street art has been designed to cheer up the public during a period when the news headlines have been bleak, and light has often been harder to spot than shade.”
According to the publication, the Bristolian street artists hope that the exhibition will offer light relief and cheer during these ongoing difficult times across Britain. Furthermore, they state that Banksy’s organisation, Pest Control Office, has played down talk of any truly deep meaning behind the items.
The response to the art has been overwhelmingly positive, with residents thrilled to see Banksy express himself in their area. In an interview with the BBC, artist Daniel Lloyd-Morgan, who has been heavily involved with painting the ‘London Zoo’ exhibit, reflected, “It’s not just about the artwork, it’s about the whole environment he’s creating, it becomes a sort of work of art itself – what happens to it, people steal it or take it away.”
