Our Senior Writers explore the significance of Banksy's latest works around London. Daisy Culleton examines the artist, while Cerys Deakin delves into their impact on animals themselves, looking at how they have sparked debates around animal captivity, as well as awareness for conservation efforts.
Who is Banksy? That’s the question everyone has been asking since the anonymous graffiti artist and political activist was first discovered in Bristol in the early 1990s. Known for his unique stencilling technique and politically charged works, Banksy, now a global phenomenon and renowned artist, has successfully hidden his identity for over 30 years. His elusive and secretive nature has played a huge role in establishing his career, with hundreds of people flocking to see his artworks and some even trying to unmask the person behind it all.
However, the manner in which he shares his work with the world is possibly the greatest factor determining his success. Known as a guerrilla street artist, Banksy utilises the most unconventional of public spaces as his canvases, leaving his spontaneous works to be discovered by unassuming passers-by. Art novices and art connoisseurs alike have fallen in love with this technique, always waiting for the next Banksy to appear, although never able to predict where it will be.
More recently, in the summer of this year, Banksy took the world by storm as he unleashed a ‘zoo’ full of artworks across London over a series of days. From a goat perching on a building in Kew to a howling wolf painted on the satellite dish of a closed-down building in Peckham, their meanings and purposes were quickly dissected by the media and public, with many feeling that an environmental message relating to animal captivity and conservation tied the group of works together. However, before Senior Writer and Zoologist Cerys Deakin takes you on a deeper look into some of these works and their impact on wildlife, it is important to note this is not the first time that Banksy has been credited with employing an environmental narrative.
Banksy’s ‘I Remember When This Was All Trees’ (2010) carried an undeniably eco-conscious commentary. Executed on a derelict wall at Detroit’s abandoned Packard Automotive Plant, the piece commented on the loss of nature and urban decay at the hands of industrialisation. Gas Mask Boy (2009), painted predominantly in grayscale except for the reflection of a flourishing field of flowers in the young boy’s large respiratory mask, critiqued air pollution and its impact on future generations. Furthermore, through his Tree Mural (2024), which popped up overnight in Finsbury Park, Banksy urged viewers to care for the planet by replicating the absent leaves of a bare tree on the residential wall that stood behind it.
Now, onto taking a deeper look at Banksy’s latest wildlife creations.
The Monkeys:
The Swinging Monkeys in East London. Image Credits: Matt Brown via Wikimedia Commons
One of the nine instalments featured three monkeys swinging across a bridge in East London. In native environments, primates are becoming increasingly vulnerable to the effects of humans, particularly when considering the high levels of habitat degradation that have occurred. Therefore, this piece was particularly impressive when considering the location of the instalment, alongside the inferred meaning of the piece reflecting some of the key conservation methods that are used in native environments for many primate species.
In the Amazon rainforest, there have been notable successes in conservation solutions, especially with the implementation of wildlife bridges. These bridges are constructed with the hope of giving animals like primates the opportunity to avoid human infrastructure and reduce the effects of fragmentation of environments. In Brazil, fragmentation and road accidents are the leading causes of biodiversity loss, so overhead bridges are an essential way to preserve endangered species. The bridges being implemented across Brazil are also low-cost and work to be sustainable as well as offering aid to endangered animals. This provides evidence that conservation solutions such as this one are successful and provides incentive and reason for them to be implemented in other locations.
This art instalment from Banksy brings these conservation solutions to the spotlight and illustrates to people in London that these issues are real, even if we can’t see them in our day-to-day lives. There is hope that instalments such as this one, will enlighten people on the biodiversity loss that is taking place and that an ‘out of sight out of mind’ mindset cannot be accepted any longer. It also helps to encourage people to become more educated on what is happening across the globe so that they can better understand the patterns in biodiversity changes, threats to biodiversity and conservation successes to be celebrated.
The Rhino Banksy instalment in Charlton. Image Credits: Raph_PH via Wikimedia Commons
The Rhino:
Another one of the nine pop-ups was an innovative piece of a rhinoceros standing on top of an old car. This piece was interesting in that it illustrates the size of these dominant animals in the urban world, with praise being given for their morphological and biological accuracy. Rhinos are characterised by large bodies with a horn, and stubby legs. Whilst the piece is powerful in illustrating the large size of the animals, it doesn’t compromise the accuracy of the animal morphology. This may be an important feature that Banksy consciously chose to select, to ensure that the accuracy was not clouded by inaccurate representation of the animal.
The insight provided by this instalment is a great way to make people aware of these animals even from within their busy city lives. Raising awareness for endangered species is a crucial way in which conservation operates, greater awareness often results in greater support which allows conservation solutions to take shape. The rhino is a particularly iconic flagship species, being one of The Big 5. They are key in promoting conservation action in Africa and Asia, offering an umbrella effect whereby the conservation of rhinos indirectly helps the rest of the food chain and ecosystem.
Conservation management and solutions are essential for all Rhino species. The white rhino has had significant publicity in recent years due to there being only 2 left alive. These rhinos are being closely monitored and highly publicised in the hope to continue to raise awareness and promote future conservation. It is because of these efforts that some rhino populations are on the up! A study on Black Rhino in 2022 found that conservation solutions were having significant successes in promoting population growth for the species. Whilst prior evidence gave predictions that there would be approximately 290 individuals in the wild, the actual number was closer to 6,400! This was all claimed to be the success of conservation solutions that had been implemented.
The Gorilla Banksy installment at ZSL. Image Credits: Raph_PH via Wikimedia Commons
The Gorilla:
Arguably the most popular instalment was the Gorilla piece outside London Zoo. This piece was the most thought-provoking relating to the location, as well as the artwork itself. Zoos are the subject of much global debate, regarding whether they are truly beneficial or if they are simply a profit-generating attraction. The Gorilla instalment plays into these debates, with the illustration of a gorilla ‘freeing’ other animals held within the zoo. This piece has had much speculation with some claiming it is a celebration of London Zoo, whilst others are claiming Banksy to be ‘anti-zoo’ - regardless of the debates, the piece gave way for great publicity for the zoo.
Reports have suggested various aims behind Banksy’s instalments, one being the need to underline human impact and put animals back in the spotlight. The meaning behind this particular instalment has been described as ‘more hidden than usual’ which is a new idea for Banksy’s artwork and poses the idea that maybe this was the point. Maybe Banksy chose to construct this piece in this way to encourage deeper, thought-provoking ideas and understandings.
My belief is that these pieces were constructed and carried out with meticulous planning with the hope of having an impact. Banksy work is known for being iconic and highly publicised, which could provide great engagement with conservation organisations and efforts. I hope that there are people who have interpreted the artwork with similar mindsets to mine and can see how the biodiversity depicted is important. Artwork is known to be subjective and often abstract, but is it not clear what Banksy is telling us? Animals and biodiversity are the greatest natural artwork we will see.
About the Authors:
Cerys Deakin is an MSci Zoologist at the University of Exeter with a keen passion for conservation and sustainability. With a high interest in mammals and primates, Cerys hopes to share her passion with others and inspire them to work to conserve biodiversity. You can see Cerys’ passion for wildlife in images over on her Instagram @cerys.hermione.photography and check out her skills over on LinkedIn.
Daisy Culleton is an American Studies and History graduate from the University of Nottingham. She has a keen interest in both Art and Environmental History.
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