Works by Banksy damaged or destroyed
Encyclopedia
This list is of works of guerilla art by Banksy
removed from their original locations or otherwise damaged
or destroyed
.
Banksy
Banksy is a pseudonymous England-based graffiti artist, political activist, film director, and painter.His satirical street art and subversive epigrams combine irreverent dark humour with graffiti done in a distinctive stencilling technique...
removed from their original locations or otherwise damaged
Vandalism of art
Vandalism of art refers to intentional damage of an artwork . The object is usually exhibited in public, becomes damaged as a result of the act, and remains in place right after the act...
or destroyed
Art destruction
Art destruction involves the damaging or destruction of works of art. This can happen through a natural process, an accident, or deliberate human involvement.-Natural destruction:...
.
Removed from their original locations
- Cave art hoax with accompanying exhibit label, hung on a wall in the British MuseumBritish MuseumThe British Museum is a museum of human history and culture in London. Its collections, which number more than seven million objects, are amongst the largest and most comprehensive in the world and originate from all continents, illustrating and documenting the story of human culture from its...
, removed after two or three days and subsequently accessioned; in 2005.
- Two works jetwashed away and a third work, of a boy holding a stereo and a teddy bear, the subject of legal action opposing its ablation by Hackney Council in order 'to keep streets clean', in DalstonDalstonDalston is a district of north-east London, England, located in the London Borough of Hackney. It is situated northeast of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London...
, LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
; in 2009.
- Rat, stolen from an electricity meter box outside the home of a well-known underwear designer in MelbourneMelbourneMelbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, claimed to be by Banksy; the authenticityAuthenticity in artAuthenticity in art has a variety of meanings related to different ways in which a work of art or an artistic performance may be considered authentic.Denis Dutton distinguishes between nominal authenticity and expressive authenticity....
of this work was questioned, with some calling it a fakeForgeryForgery is the process of making, adapting, or imitating objects, statistics, or documents with the intent to deceive. Copies, studio replicas, and reproductions are not considered forgeries, though they may later become forgeries through knowing and willful misrepresentations. Forging money or...
; in 2010.
- Mickey MouseMickey MouseMickey Mouse is a cartoon character created in 1928 by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks at The Walt Disney Studio. Mickey is an anthropomorphic black mouse and typically wears red shorts, large yellow shoes, and white gloves...
-inspired 'Livin' the Dream', removed from Sunset BoulevardSunset BoulevardSunset Boulevard is a street in the western part of Los Angeles County, California, that stretches from Figueroa Street in downtown Los Angeles to the Pacific Coast Highway at the Pacific Ocean in the Pacific Palisades...
, Los AngelesLos ÁngelesLos Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
and destroyed; in 2011.
- Mural entitled 'Caution', detached from a wall in Boyle Heights, Los Angeles; in 2011.
Concealed and/or defaced
- In March 2007 one of Banksy's early pieces, a 25ft-long artwork featuring a collection of blue shapes with the artist's trademark tag, on the side of garages in Albion Road, Easton, BristolEaston, BristolEaston is both the name of a council ward in the city of Bristol in the United Kingdom, and an inner city area that lies partly within that ward. The Easton ward also contains the Whitehall and Netham areas of the city. Notable places within the ward include Lawrence Hill and Stapleton Road railway...
, was mistakenly painted over by graffiti-removal contractors Nordic. They had been asked by Bristol City Council to tackle graffiti adjacent to the Banksy work, but wrongly targeted the piece itself. Within days someone sprayed the words "Wot no Banksy?" over the contractors' plain paintwork.
- In April 2007 Banksy's famous 2002 piece depicting John TravoltaJohn TravoltaJohn Joseph Travolta is an American actor, dancer and singer. Travolta first became known in the 1970s, after appearing on the television series Welcome Back, Kotter and starring in the box office successes Saturday Night Fever and Grease...
and Samuel L. JacksonSamuel L. JacksonSamuel Leroy Jackson is an American film and television actor and film producer. After becoming involved with the Civil Rights Movement, he moved on to acting in theater at Morehouse College, and then films. He had several small roles such as in the film Goodfellas before meeting his mentor,...
's Pulp FictionPulp fictionPulp fiction may refer to:* pulp magazines, short stories presented in a magazine format, printed on cheaply made wood-pulp paper* Pulp Fiction, a 1994 film directed by Quentin Tarantino...
characters pointing bananas instead of guns, on a wall near Old Street tube station in London, was painted over by London Transport workmen despite having an estimated value of more than £300,000 at the time. Asked to comment on the mural's destruction, a Transport for London spokesman said "Our graffiti removal teams are staffed by professional cleaners not professional art critics."
- In April 2007 a four year old wall mural 25ft long in Cato Street, Easton, Bristol, marketed for sale with its attached house (at 21 Milvart Street) thrown in for free via a local gallery, was defaced with red paint. Celebrities had previously expressed interest in buying the work, and the gallery owner announced her intention to e-mail Banksy to see if he would restore the work.
- In November 2007 a mural of a policeman stopping and searching a young girl in GlastonburyGlastonburyGlastonbury is a small town in Somerset, England, situated at a dry point on the low lying Somerset Levels, south of Bristol. The town, which is in the Mendip district, had a population of 8,784 in the 2001 census...
, created in connection with the Glastonbury FestivalGlastonbury FestivalThe Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts, commonly abbreviated to Glastonbury or even Glasto, is a performing arts festival that takes place near Pilton, Somerset, England, best known for its contemporary music, but also for dance, comedy, theatre, circus, cabaret and other arts.The...
, was whitewashed over.
- 'The Little Diver' or 'Diving Bell', previously protected with perspex by the council, incensing many street artists, covered with silver paint and the slogan 'Bansky woz ere', in MelbourneMelbourneMelbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
; in 2008.
- Piece usually described as 'Naked man hanging from a window' on the side of Brook Sexual Health Clinic in Park Street, Bristol, and voted for retention by 93% of the public in a 2006 council poll, spattered with blue paint in an overnight paint bomb attack on 22 June 2009.
- Mural of the British Royal FamilyBritish Royal FamilyThe British Royal Family is the group of close relatives of the monarch of the United Kingdom. The term is also commonly applied to the same group of people as the relations of the monarch in her or his role as sovereign of any of the other Commonwealth realms, thus sometimes at variance with...
, featured on the cover of a single by BlurBlur (band)Blur is an English alternative rock band. Formed in London in 1989 as Seymour, the group consists of singer Damon Albarn, guitarist Graham Coxon, bassist Alex James and drummer Dave Rowntree. Blur's debut album Leisure incorporated the sounds of Madchester and shoegazing...
, accidentally painted over by workmen employed by Hackney Council, LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, in September 2009.
- Parachuting RatParachuting Rat (Banksy)Parachuting Rat is an artwork in Melbourne, Australia created by Banksy in 2003. On 26 April 2010 it was painted over by council contractors, leading to local and international coverage and debate on the nature of street art and its preservation, and new measures for its...
, last surviving example of Banksy's Melbourne street art, accidentally painted over by council contractors in March 2010.
- In February 2011 a mural behind Westwood Village Urban Outfitters in Westwood Village, Los Angeles, depicting a child holding a machine gun loaded with coloured crayons, was defaced with black paint just days before the 83rd Academy Awards83rd Academy AwardsThe 83rd Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences , honored the best films of 2010 and took place February 27, 2011, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles beginning at 5:30 p.m. PST / 8:30 p.m. EST. During the ceremony, Academy Awards ...
for which his documentary film Exit Through The Gift ShopExit Through the Gift ShopGuetta happily accepts the assignment, adopting the name "Mr. Brainwash", putting up street art in the city and six months later, re-mortgaging his business to afford renting copious equipment and a complete production team to create pieces of art under his supervision...
had been nominated.
- A Banksy piece drawn in October 2010 around an extractor fan on the Grosvenor Hotel in TorquayTorquayTorquay is a town in the unitary authority area of Torbay and ceremonial county of Devon, England. It lies south of Exeter along the A380 on the north of Torbay, north-east of Plymouth and adjoins the neighbouring town of Paignton on the west of the bay. Torquay’s population of 63,998 during the...
, depicted a child drawing a robot. Within a week the owners announced plans to cover it with protective perspex amid newspaper speculation that it had increased the value of the property by £150,000. Vandals smashed the perspex screen on 31 May 2011 to attack the mural with paint stripper, removing the child.
- On 6 July 2010, 'Gorilla with Pink Face Mask' in Fishponds Road, Eastville, Bristol, was painted over by new owners of the building - by sheer coincidence on the same day that Bristol Zoo Gardens celebrated its 175th anniversary with "Wow! Gorillas", an event placing decorated life-size gorillas around the city for 10 weeks.
- In October 2011, Banksy's 'Sniper' on Upper Maudlin Street was vandalised with black spray paint. It is not yet known who is responsible for this, or why.
- In 2011 a Banksy work in Boston's Chinatown was graffitied and partially pained over.
Demolished
- 'The New Pollution' in St Werburghs, Bristol, was knocked down in 2006 by developers in order to build a new block of flats.
- 'No Loitrin' on Essex Street in Cambridge, MA; removed by sandblasting.