This week Banksy unveiled his fifth animal-themed artwork in London, as people flocked to the new London locations to see his new art.
The enigmatic street artist first began spray-painting his stenciled designs around Bristol in the 90s. He moved to London in early 2000 and has since drawn a large following for his societal depictions.
Earlier this year, he faced criticism from the then Home Secretary James Cleverly who said artwork he created for Glastonbury Festival was “trivialising” small boats crossings and “vile”.
The artist had confirmed he was the person behind an inflatable boat filled with migrant dummies which had been crowd surfed at the music festival in June, during performances by Bristol indie punk band Idles and rapper Little Simz
But can you see the new murals? Where are they? Here is everything you need to know, explained.
Where can you see Banksy’s murals?
Kew Bridge
The first of his new pieces was a black mountain goat perched on a wall support structure that faces a surveillance camera near Kew Bridge in south-west London.
The mural shows a the giant goat with rocks falling down below it, just above where a CCTV camera is pointed.
Chelsea
On Tuesday, as part of his quintet of new murals, Banksy added silhouettes of two elephants with their trunks stretched toward each other on the side of a building near Chelsea. You can see this on the side of a house in Edith Terrace.
Brick Lane
The Chelsea mural was followed by a trio of monkeys looking as though they were swinging underneath a bridge over Brick Lane, near a vintage clothing shop in the popular east London market street, not far from Shoreditch High Street.
Walthamstow
The business also shared their appreciation of the piece in an Instagram post, writing: “So proud to have a @banksy on the side of our shop! Thank you for choosing us, and Walthamstow to showcase your talent.”
The mural depicting the pelicans stealing fish from the shop’s sign, shows one bird stooping down to scoop one up, while another tosses one in the air.
Local Labour MP Stella Creasy has praised the new work at Bonners Fish Bar in Northcote Road, which is in her constituency.
She said: “Walthamstow. Where even our chippy is just a bit cooler than everyone else’s.
“Even if this isn’t a Banksy it’s brill and the chips there are magic, though the owner’s on holiday at moment so you will have to wait to confirm that yourself.
“So thank you whoever added this bit of magic to our street art today.”
Which Banksy artworks can no longer be seen?
The anonymous street artist’s fourth piece, a wolf howling on a satellite dish, was removed on Thursday afternoon less than an hour after it was unveiled online by the anonymous street artist.
The wolf artwork, was located on the roof of a shop in Peckham, south-east London.
Another Peckham-based art piece created by Banksy was removed within an hour of it being confirmed as authentic in December 2023.
In 2009, two Banksy works were jetwashed away in Dalston by the Hackney Council. The piece depicted boy holding a stereo and a teddy bear.
In Kent, a vulture with fuel pump for a head on the side of a container at Dungeness beach, was stolen in early September 2010.
In North London his piece called “Slave Labour” a 2012 mural depicting a child making a union Jack flag, a commentary on the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, was carefully taken off the wall of a Poundland shop – before it was then attempted to be sold at the Fine Arts Auction Miami art house just days later.
What are Banksy’s most famous works?
With over 100, often temporary, artworks to his name, in locations as diverse as Jerusalem to Los Angeles, London to New Orleans, he has an extensive back catalogue of subversive work.
One of his most famous works is Love Is In the Air, which he created on the wall of the West Bank separating Israel from Palestine in 2003.
It depicts a man wearing a bandana to cover his face and preparing to throw a bouquet of flowers in the pose that the viewer might expect him to throw a grenade or a Molotov cocktail.
Kissing Coppers shows two British policemen kissing. It appeared on the wall of The Prince Albert pub in Brighton in 2004. After suffering repeated vandalism, the owners of the pub removed it and sold it for $575,000 in February 2014.
The Mild, Mild West is one of Banksy’s earliest public works. It shows a teddy bear throwing a Molotov cocktail at three riot police. Situated at 80 Stokes Croft in Bristol, it was painted in response to heavy-handed police responses to unlicensed raves and parties in the region around that time.