美瑛町西美の杜

In 2026, the exhibition will be open from May 1 to November 30 on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays, and Mondays.

Opening hours are from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

In addition, the exhibition will be open daily from May 1 to May 11 and from August 7 to August 17.

 

Banksy 

is a masked artist from Bristol whose date of birth and real name remain unknown. Since the late 1990s, they have gained international recognition for illegally creating socially satirical spray-painted and stencil artworks on streets around the world.

In 2005, Banksy carried out guerrilla-style actions by secretly installing artworks in major museums such as the Museum of Modern Art and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York without permission. They have also shown a strong interest in the Israeli–Palestinian conflict and have been actively involved in related works and activities.

In 2017, Banksy opened The Walled Off Hotel, an art hotel overlooking the Separation Wall, which they famously described as having “the worst view in the world.” Their iconic work Girl with Balloon, depicting a girl reaching for a heart-shaped balloon, was ranked first in a 2017 UK poll of the nation’s favorite artworks.

In June 2023, Banksy held their first official exhibition in 14 years, CUT & RUN, in Glasgow, UK.

 

Queen Victoria

Could she have been a lesbian?

This work satirizes a story that has circulated in some circles regarding Queen Victoria. The rumor itself sparked an incident that brought this artwork to the attention of audiences around the world.

In 2006, pop singer Christina Aguilera—who at the time was the subject of tabloid rumors questioning her sexuality despite being married to music executive Jordan Bratman—sold three works, including Queen Victoria (canvas), for approximately 5,000 yen each. I later purchased this work for 10,000 yen.

The incident became major international news, resulting in the artwork being widely seen and discussed across the globe. (Christina Aguilera later divorced Jordan Bratman; discussions about her sexuality have continued in the media.)

 

Monkey Queen

Monkey Queen is imbued with strong anti-royalist sentiment. The work alludes to the idea that Queen Elizabeth became monarch not through personal achievement, but simply by being born into the royal family. It questions the notion of equality in the world: even if a monkey were crowned queen, nothing would fundamentally change.

From an evolutionary perspective, the piece suggests that although humans are millions of years “ahead” of other species, we are not necessarily more sophisticated or fundamentally different. Ultimately, the work delivers a broader critique of power—implying that some of the world’s most powerful leaders convey the message that they were “simply born for the role.”

 

Bomb Middle England

This work is the same size as Have a Nice Day (2002) and Weston Super Mare (2003). Many of Banksy’s early works were horizontally elongated, often measuring approximately one meter in width.

At Banksy’s unofficial exhibition The Art of Banksy, held in Amsterdam in September 2016, Bomb Middle England was accompanied by the following description: three helmeted women, resembling soldiers, are shown throwing bomb-like balls inspired by the French game pétanque onto the pristine and proudly maintained British turf. The image delivers a playful yet subversive critique of social values and national identity.

 

Turf War

This work is modeled after Winston Churchill, who is depicted wearing an unexpected green mohawk. During the May Day riots in London in 2000, a piece of grass was placed on top of a statue of Churchill—an image Banksy later praised as the ultimate act of vandalism.

The composition is primarily rendered in black and white, a characteristic feature of the work, while the vivid green mohawk draws immediate attention. The title Turf War refers not only to a conflict over territory, but also plays on the literal meaning of “turf,” reinforcing the work’s layered wordplay and visual irony.

 

Devolved Parliament

This monumental painting was unveiled at the Bristol Museum in 2009. The word Parliament refers to the British legislature, while Devolved carries multiple meanings, including the delegation of authority as well as degeneration or regression.

The work is a parody of the House of Commons—one of the two chambers of the British Parliament (the green House of Commons versus the red House of Lords). Instead of elected politicians representing the British people, the chamber is filled entirely with monkeys.

In the opposing seats of the ruling and opposition parties, monkeys jeer at one another: some raise their arms in mockery, others shout in protest. A few appear deep in thought or asleep, while others stare into empty bottles, clearly disengaged from the proceedings. The message—that politics is being conducted within a “devolved,” degenerate parliament—extends far beyond British politics alone.

 

Bomb Hugger (Bomb Love)

In this work, a young girl embraces a bomb as if it were a stuffed toy, holding it with overflowing affection. The warm pink background emphasizes her innocence, while the bomb symbolizes war. Created in 2003, the year the Iraq War began, the piece suggests that love—no matter how small—has the power to stop a bomb. It expresses the pure, childlike belief that love can overcome even war itself.

 

CND

This work was created around 2003, two years after the British military joined the invasion of Iraq. CND stands for the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, a UK-based organization advocating nuclear disarmament. The symbol depicted in the work is the CND logo, widely known today as the peace symbol.

Notably, the peace mark in this image is left unfinished, implying an unresolved struggle. Founded in 1957, the CND movement stood at the forefront of Britain’s peace activism. Its symbol was later adopted by the American hippie movement and the Vietnam War anti-war protests, eventually becoming a global icon of peace and anti-war resistance.

 

Golf Sale

This work is inspired by the Tiananmen Square protests. A tank—an unmistakable symbol of war and oppression—is repurposed as a signboard directing viewers to a golf equipment sale. Golf, a sport associated with wealth and privilege, is used here as a metaphor for democracy as a game played by the elite, while the tank signals the reality of violence behind power. Together, the image delivers a conflicted yet hopeful message about peace and democratization.

The man who stood in front of a tank during the Tiananmen Incident is known as the “Tank Man” or the “Unknown Rebel,” as his identity remains unknown. In 1998, Time magazine named him one of the 100 most influential people of the 20th century. A parallel can be drawn between this anonymous figure and Banksy himself—both masked, unnamed, and globally recognized symbols of resistance.

 

Napalm

A naked Vietnamese girl runs in terror from a napalm strike, flanked by Mickey Mouse and Ronald McDonald—icons of American capitalism. The work is filled with sharp satire typical of Banksy and was once owned by Damien Hirst. Napalm is often regarded as one of Banksy’s most politically charged and provocative works. It is also known by an alternative title, Can’t Beat That Feeling.

The image is based on a famous photograph taken in 1972 by Associated Press photographer Nick Ut during the Vietnam War. The photograph shows children fleeing in horror as black smoke rises from napalm bombs in the background. The image of a young girl running naked and screaming after being burned by napalm won the Pulitzer Prize and became an enduring symbol of the senseless brutality of the war.

After taking the photograph, Nick Ut carried the injured children to his car and drove them to a hospital in Saigon. The girl in the photograph was nine years old at the time. Her name is Phan Thị Kim Phúc. She suffered severe burns but miraculously survived after 14 months of hospitalization and 17 surgeries. She now lives in Canada.

In Banksy’s reinterpretation, Mickey Mouse and Ronald McDonald stand on either side of the girl, smiling and holding her hands. On the surface, they appear friendly and reassuring, yet the girl is crying out in fear. Through this disturbing contrast, the work delivers a powerful critique of militarism and capitalism, suggesting that those who appear benevolent may in fact be complicit in violence and suffering.

The gray background further amplifies the gravity of the message. Violence, power, nationalism, hypocrisy, and conspiracy all converge in this single, profoundly unsettling work.

 

Happy Choppers

When this work was released in 2003, most galleries were still largely unaware of Banksy’s existence. Its message emerges from the unique tension between childlike pastel colors and a dark, menacing subject matter.

Military helicopters advance in formation, heavily armed and threatening. Behind them stretches a soft powder-blue sky, while a bright pink ribbon is tied to one of the helicopters. The term “choppers” is a colloquial nickname for American military helicopters dating back to the Korean War, and it carries a double meaning: the spinning blades that “chop” the air, and the brutal destruction inflicted by helicopter-borne soldiers on civilians below.

 

Have a Nice Day

This is one of Banksy’s most significant early works and is often considered his major debut. It was released in 2003, around the time of the founding of the legendary gallery POW (Pictures on Walls), through which Banksy sold his works.

A line of heavily armed riot police stands facing forward, with a tank positioned at the center. Riding atop the tank is a police officer wearing a helmet emblazoned with a yellow smiley face, while holding a machine gun. POW once described this piece as “POW’s first work—and its happiest work.”

The smiley face, a universal symbol of happiness, is placed in stark contrast with the police officer, who represents authority and force. Beneath the image, the words Have a nice day appear. The collision of cheerfulness and violence creates an unsettling atmosphere. Though visually simple, the work carries multiple layers of meaning—an approach that is quintessentially Banksy.

 

обережно (Be Careful) – MIHN Landmines

On the first day Banksy arrived in Kyiv, Ukraine, he happened to stop and stare at this warning sign. By then, his Ukrainian guide had already walked away. Banksy had expected landmine warning signs to prominently feature skull-and-crossbones imagery, but this was not the case.

Instead, the sign revealed another, lesser-known casualty of war: printer’s ink. Due to shortages, the stenciled warning was crudely filled in with the word MIHN (mines). The work highlights how even basic means of communication are degraded by conflict, turning an ordinary sign into a stark symbol of survival under wartime conditions.

 

Rude Copper

This work depicts a British police officer wearing a traditional custodian helmet, raising his middle finger as if addressing the viewer directly. The gesture raises an unsettling question: are police officers protecting citizens, or threatening them as representatives of a corrupt state apparatus?

Rude Copper was the first work released by Banksy, over 20 years ago. At the time of its release in 2002, Banksy was still an unknown and emerging artist. Few—even among art lovers—could have imagined that this provocative image would mark the beginning of a globally influential career.

 

Jack and Jill (Police Kids)

Released in 2005 at a Christmas event titled Santa’s Ghetto, this work is also known as Police Kids. It is based on the traditional nursery rhyme Jack and Jill, which tells the story of a boy and a girl climbing a hill to fetch water.

Set against a bright sky-blue background, a smiling boy and girl run toward the viewer. The girl carries a basket of flowers, while both children wear bulletproof vests labeled “POLICE.” The image delivers a biting irony: what kind of world requires children to wear police body armor?

At the time of its release, crime rates were rising and London society was experiencing growing tension. The work serves as a sharp critique of social instability and the normalization of violence.

 

Donuts (Brown)

The 2009 Donuts series exists in two color variations: Chocolate and Strawberry. The image depicts five American police officers on motorcycles escorting a police van loaded with oversized iced donuts. Anyone would be irritated if traffic were stopped simply to make way for donuts.

The work satirizes consumer culture and institutional privilege, using humor to critique protected power structures. Donuts never appeared as a mural; it exists only as paintings and screen prints.

 

Stop and Search

This work depicts a London Metropolitan Police officer, dressed in 1980s-style uniform, questioning Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz while searching her luggage. The image satirizes the riots and protests that erupted across England in the 1980s in response to racist policing practices carried out by the Metropolitan Police, particularly against ethnic minorities.

By subjecting Dorothy—a universal symbol of innocence—to a harsh stop-and-search procedure, Banksy exposes the absurdity and cruelty of indiscriminate authority.

 

Flying Copper

Released in 2003, this work portrays a heavily armed police officer carrying a machine gun, with handcuffs at his waist and angel wings on his back. Police are traditionally seen as protectors of peace and public order, yet they also embody institutional and state power.

The contradiction between the weaponized figure and the angelic wings highlights the uneasy duality of authority: protection versus oppression, order versus violence.

 

Love Is in the Air

Throughout his career, Banksy has consistently criticized capitalism and militarism. He first painted a work in this vein during his initial visit to Palestine in 2003.

A young man, his face concealed by a bandana, is dressed like a street protester and frozen in an aggressive, throwing stance reminiscent of 1960s dissidents. However, instead of a Molotov cocktail, he holds a bouquet of flowers. The image suggests that meaningful change must be achieved through peaceful means—otherwise, resistance risks becoming the catalyst for even greater violence.

 

Love Rat

This work depicts a rat holding a paintbrush, with red paint dripping from a heart symbol it has drawn on a wall. At first glance, the rat appears to be spreading love to all who encounter the image. On closer inspection, however, the dripping paint resembles blood.

The ambiguity leaves the interpretation open: perhaps the work suggests that love inevitably involves pain and suffering, or perhaps it reminds us that love can also be joyful, playful, and sincere. As with many of Banksy’s works, meaning emerges from the tension between innocence and unease.

 

Gangsta Rat

The rat in this work stands in front of a radio cassette player, wearing a heavy chain necklace and a New York Mets cap. The styling evokes the underground street culture of New York City in the 1980s and 1990s. Sprayed in red on the wall behind the rat is the word iPOW.

The “i” recalls Apple products such as the iPhone and iPod, symbols of contemporary consumer culture, while “POW” refers to Pictures on Walls, the gallery through which Banksy sold his works. The combination links street culture, commercialization, and the art market in a single, ironic gesture.

 

Rat Series (2004)

In 2004, Banksy released a series of rat works in which the animals hold placards bearing different messages, including Because I’m Worthless, Get Out While You Can, and Welcome to Hell. These works emphasize the sense of emptiness and disposability experienced by the marginalized poor—those routinely overlooked within the relentless competition of modern capitalist society.

 

Radar Rat / Paparazzi Rat

These works respond to the widespread installation of surveillance devices across the United Kingdom, protesting the idea that personal privacy no longer exists.

Rats live without permission. They are hated, hunted, and persecuted, surviving in filth and quiet despair. Yet a rat has the power to bring an entire civilization to its knees. For those who feel unwanted, ignored, or despised, the rat becomes an unlikely role model. By overlapping the image of rats with marginalized human existence, Banksy invites viewers to place themselves in the same position. Rats serve as his recurring messengers, speaking directly on his behalf.

 

Keep It Real

This work features one of Banksy’s characteristic chimpanzees. The heavy sign hanging from its neck, its slumped shoulders, and the weary expression in its eyes convey the burden of oppression placed upon it.

The phrase Keep it real, written on the sign, is a slang expression meaning “be yourself.” It urges honesty and authenticity—do not pretend, embellish, or hide behind appearances when substance is lacking. In everyday language, the phrase can function as either encouragement or warning, reinforcing the work’s quietly defiant message.

 

Choose Your Weapon

Choose Your Weapon is a tribute to Keith Haring, one of America’s most influential graffiti artists of the 1980s, who died at the young age of 31. The work draws on Haring’s iconic Barking Dog motif.

The image depicts a hooded man with his face concealed by a bandana, standing beside a barking dog restrained by a chain leash. When this work was released in 2010, youth violence and crime were major social issues in the UK. The title Choose Your Weapon suggests that violence is not the only means of expression; instead, art itself can be a powerful language for resistance and self-expression.

 

In the Event of a Divorce

Among the works once collected by legendary actor and art collector Dennis Hopper is a unique variation of Girl with Balloon. Officially titled In the Event of a Divorce Cut Here, this version was reportedly a gift from Banksy to Hopper, possibly intended as dark humor during a period when Hopper was facing divorce proceedings.

This rare work is closely tied to Banksy’s most iconic imagery and highlights his tendency to blend personal narratives with sharp irony. It is said that some artworks were later taken by Hopper’s wife during the divorce, adding another layer of meaning to the piece.

 

Girl with Balloon

At first glance, this work appears gentle, emotional, and full of love. On closer inspection, however, it invites deeper reflection. Did the girl release the balloon because she gave up on love, or because she was forced to move forward by the realities of society? Is she destined to continue searching for what she has lost?

The accompanying phrase has often been interpreted as a quiet encouragement: “You can’t change what you’ve lost. Don’t dwell on it forever. Keep moving forward.” Art acts as a mirror of the viewer’s inner state, and interpretations of this work often change depending on one’s emotional condition.

On October 5, 2018, a framed version of Girl with Balloon was auctioned at Sotheby’s London. Immediately after it sold for approximately ¥150 million, a shredder hidden inside the frame activated, partially destroying the artwork in front of a stunned audience. Banksy later revealed that the shredder unexpectedly stopped halfway through.

In 2021, the partially shredded work was reintroduced as Love Is in the Bin and auctioned at Sotheby’s London on October 14. With an estimated price of ¥600–900 million, it ultimately sold for approximately ¥2.9 billion—becoming the most expensive Banksy work ever sold.

 

Structure of the shredding frame:

1. Resin frame imitating gold-plated wood

2. Sound generator and relay device to halt cutting

3. Shutter-door receiver and sound generator

4. Receiver batteries for extended standby time

5. Motor battery

6. Raw resin inserted into plywood subframe

7. Main drive: 12V Parvalux motor

8. Knurled aluminum rollers with knife grooves

9. Cutting rollers between aluminum discs for smooth shredding

10. Rubber roller feeding shredded material downward

11. Outfeed roller motor (originally intended as the main motor)

12. Fully shredded painting removed from a trash bin

 

HMV

This work is an homage to His Master’s Voice, the famous painting of the dog Nipper listening to a gramophone, widely used as the logo of a major record company. In Banksy’s reinterpretation, the dog listens not to a gramophone, but holds a bazooka.

The image expresses rebellion against control and resistance to the “mainstream culture” produced by large corporations that mass-produce music. Some interpretations suggest a generational conflict: the gramophone symbolizes tradition and conservatism, while the dog represents youth attempting to destroy outdated authority.

Although the work appears playful and familiar, the latent aggression of the seemingly innocent dog mirrors Banksy’s provocative rat motifs. Social criticism and black humor coexist, making this piece quintessentially Banksy.

 

Very Little Helps

The title of this work plays on the well-known slogan of the UK supermarket chain Tesco: Every Little Helps. By twisting it into Very Little Helps, Banksy satirizes consumer capitalism, suggesting that even children are subtly conditioned and manipulated by corporate power.

 

Festival (Destroy Capitalism)

Festival is one of Banksy’s darker satirical works. At a music festival, young mothers, punks, hippies, and hooligans—groups often associated with anti-capitalist ideals—line up at merchandise stalls.

Ironically, the T-shirts they eagerly purchase are printed with the slogan Destroy Capitalism. Unaware of the contradiction, they consume a product that has been perfectly commercialized to suit their tastes. The work exposes how even resistance can be packaged, sold, and absorbed by the very system it claims to oppose.

 

Trolley Hunters

This work depicts a hunting tribe attempting to hunt shopping carts (“trolleys”). Through this absurd image, Banksy mocks modern society’s loss of self-sufficiency and the once-rich ways of life sacrificed in the pursuit of efficiency and convenience.

At the same time, the work poignantly addresses the widening gap between rich and poor, as well as human actions that destroy the value of nature and disrupt fragile ecosystems.

 

Morons

On March 30, 1987, Vincent van Gogh’s masterpiece Sunflowers was auctioned at Christie’s London and sold for over ¥5 billion at the time. The winning bidder was Yasuda Fire and Marine Insurance (now Sompo Japan), a Japanese company during the height of the country’s bubble economy.

Morons is a work based on imagery from art auctions and reflects Banksy’s ironic view of the art market since 2006. The title, meaning “fools,” directly mocks the frenzy surrounding high-priced art sales. In the space where Sunflowers would normally appear, Banksy inserts the provocative phrase:

“I can’t believe you morons actually buy this shit.”

The work sharply criticizes speculative excess and blind reverence for market value over artistic meaning.

 

Sale Ends Today

Created in 2006, this work features a red emergency-style sign at the center of the canvas bearing the words SALE ENDS TODAY in white lettering—reminiscent of advertising billboards urging consumers to buy things they do not truly need.

Below the sign, four women in draped cloaks kneel in prayer and mourning. The scene simultaneously laments the “end of the sale” and worships capitalism itself. Through this imagery, Banksy satirizes excessive consumer culture in developed societies, portraying capitalism as a modern religion—one that is no longer merely followed, but revered as sacred.

 

Barcode

In this work, a wild leopard escapes from a cage shaped like a barcode. Depending on interpretation, the image can be read as a critique of the illegal trafficking of wild animals overseas. At the same time, the barcode functions as a symbol of consumerism, while the leopard represents nature—or even humanity itself—trapped within that system.

With only a few visual elements—a barcode cage and a powerful animal—Banksy conveys multiple layers of meaning, exemplifying his distinctive ability to provoke complex reflection through minimal imagery.

 

Pulp Fiction

Pulp Fiction is a homage to a scene from Quentin Tarantino’s 1994 film of the same name. At first glance, the image appears to be a direct quotation from the movie, except that the gun held by the character has been replaced with a banana.

The banana, however, is not incidental: it directly references the iconic banana designed by pop art pioneer Andy Warhol for a record album cover. By merging cinema, pop art, and visual irony, Banksy transforms a symbol of violence into one of absurdity and cultural commentary.

 

Toxic Mary

In this unsettling image, Mary cradles the infant Jesus in a pose reminiscent of traditional Madonna-and-child iconography. However, in her hand she holds a bottle of poison.

The work raises an uncomfortable question: does religion truly bring safety and happiness to believers? While faith has offered comfort to many, it has also been a source of war, death, and cultural intolerance. Toxic Mary challenges viewers to reconsider the balance between the perceived benefits of religion and the immense harm carried out in its name.

 

NOLA

This work depicts a young girl holding an umbrella in the rain. She stretches out her hand to feel for raindrops, yet no rain falls around her—only beneath the umbrella she is holding.

In 2008, Banksy left an original mural titled NOLA in New Orleans, Louisiana. “NOLA” is a common nickname for the city. Three years earlier, in 2005, Hurricane Katrina struck the region, flooding approximately 80% of New Orleans and claiming more than 1,800 lives, making it one of the worst natural disasters in U.S. history.

Delays and failures in government relief efforts led many residents—particularly in predominantly Black communities—to feel abandoned by the federal administration at the time. Through this work, Banksy reflects on social inequality, racial injustice, and the painful realization that the problems we often believe exist “out there” are, in fact, rooted within our own society.

 

Grin Reaper

This work was released in 2005. It depicts the Grim Reaper, the personification of death, holding a large scythe. However, instead of a skeletal face, the figure bears a smiley face and sits atop a clock resembling Big Ben. The clock reads five minutes to midnight.

This raises an unsettling question: when the clock strikes midnight, will the Reaper go out to harvest lives? While Grim Reaper traditionally signifies death, the title of this work is Grin Reaper. Grin suggests a smile, while reaper refers to one who harvests crops. The title can be read as a darkly ironic suggestion: in five minutes, when the clock reaches midnight, the smiles will be harvested.

By combining the opposing symbols of death (darkness) and the smiley face (light), Banksy creates a distinctive worldview layered with multiple, often conflicting interpretations.

 

Death to Banksy

The BANKSY design by Ryan McCann is a rare and highly sought-after work, produced in an edition of only 60. Its scarcity and provocative title reflect the ongoing tension between Banksy’s anti-establishment stance and his global commercial success.

 

Girl with Heart Balloon

In 2021, a behind-the-scenes photo book documenting Banksy’s work was released, featuring photographs taken by his longtime manager, Steve Lazarides, who supported Banksy’s activities for 11 years until they parted ways in 2008.

This work is a silkscreen reproduction of a photograph capturing one of Banksy’s performances: a girl-shaped doll suspended beneath heart-shaped helium balloons drifting above London’s Millennium Bridge. The spectacle was witnessed by numerous passersby, including police officers, while Banksy himself reportedly watched from a distance, as if it were none of his concern.

Eventually, the helium ran out, and the figure fell to the ground, where it was crushed by a bus. By preserving the moment as an artwork, Banksy transforms a fleeting, fragile act into something immortal.

 

Peckham Rock (on Wood)

This work originated from one of Banksy’s most audacious unauthorized museum interventions. In 2005, he secretly installed his own piece inside the British Museum without permission. Disguised as an ancient artifact, the work depicts a primitive human figure pushing a shopping cart alongside a spear-pierced animal, evoking the appearance of a prehistoric ruin.

Banksy carefully attached an official-looking caption, allowing the piece to remain unnoticed on display for three days. It was only after Banksy revealed the prank on his website that the museum became aware of the installation.

On August 30, 2018, the British Museum announced via its official Twitter account that it would formally display the work that had once been illegally installed. Thirteen years later, Peckham Rock was officially exhibited as part of I Object: Ian Hislop’s Search for Dissent (September 6, 2018 – January 20, 2019), an exhibition tracing the global history of protest and dissent.

 

Di-Faced Tenner

In August 2004, Banksy produced one million fake banknotes, originally intended as playful giveaways at carnivals. At first glance, the notes resembled genuine British currency, but closer inspection revealed subversive alterations: “Bank of England” was replaced with “Banksy of England,” and Queen Elizabeth II’s portrait was substituted with that of Princess Diana.

One side of the note reads, “I promise to pay the bearer on demand the ultimate price,” while the reverse features Charles Darwin accompanied by the phrase “Trust No One.” During the carnival, Banksy distributed some of the notes to the crowd, only to later realize that people had begun using them as real currency in local shops. Recognizing that he had unintentionally created counterfeit money, Banksy stopped distribution.

Later, Banksy incorporated the concept into his authentication system. When a Banksy artwork is verified, the organization Pest Control issues a Certificate of Authentication (COA). Attached to the COA is one half of a Di-Faced Tenner featuring Princess Diana; the other half is retained by Pest Control. By separating the note, its monetary value is permanently nullified. A QR code on the COA tag links to a unique 12-digit identification number.

 

Blur – Think Tank

Banksy was responsible for the artwork of Think Tank, the 2003 album by the British rock band Blur. Designed early in Banksy’s career, the album received widespread acclaim for both its music and cover art, reaching number one on the UK charts.

 

Dismaland

Dismaland was a dystopian “bemusement park” created by Banksy in Weston-super-Mare, southwest England. Open for approximately five weeks from late summer to early autumn 2015, the project combined an amusement park with a large-scale art exhibition. Its bleak reinterpretation of theme park culture attracted global attention and critical debate.

 

Banksy Autographed Placard / CUT & RUN

Banksy’s first official solo exhibition in 14 years, CUT & RUN, was held at the Gallery of Modern Art (GoMA) in Glasgow, Scotland, from June 15 to August 28, 2023. Known for his rapid stencil technique—cut, spray, and run—the exhibition offered a rare behind-the-scenes look at 25 years of stencil production.

Because Banksy’s works are often created illegally, revealing his stencils would effectively confirm authorship. For this reason, he had never publicly displayed them before. In CUT & RUN, Banksy broke this convention, openly presenting the tools and processes behind his work.

Banksy chose GoMA in part because of a beloved local artwork: the traffic cone perpetually placed atop the equestrian statue of the Duke of Wellington outside the museum. Known affectionately as the “Conehead,” the cone has been replaced repeatedly for over 40 years despite efforts by the city council and police. This unofficial tradition, featured in Banksy’s 2005 book Wall and Piece, symbolizes Glasgow’s enduring spirit of humor, defiance, and rebellion.