EXPERTS are claiming the secret codes hidden in Banksy’s new artworks could be clues about the mystery artist’s plans for the future.
Once again, Banksy has sparked a fresh frenzy among fans, dropping a series of animal-themed artworks across London this week.
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With five pieces in five days, experts think they’ve cracked the code , that the code – the world’s most mysterious artist could be gearing up for a grand finale
Street art sleuths are buzzing after Banksy’s latest mural—a pair of pelicans diving for fish above a fish and chip shop—appeared today.
The artwork, confirmed on Banksy’s Instagram, has fuelled speculation that the notoriously secretive artist might be planning his swan song.
Expert Jay Tomkins, 52, who runs the popular Facebook group Banksy Locations, thinks the series of animal murals reveals a hidden pattern that could point to Banksy’s next move—or even his retirement.
He said: “It’s just my perspective, but numbers are definitely a factor in all of his recent work.”
With five murals—one gazelle, two elephants, three monkeys, one wolf, and now two pelicans—Tomkins believes Banksy is playing a “waltz-like” game, each piece a step closer to what could be his final bow.
He mused: “Could this be Banksy’s last waltz”, suggesting that the artist, who is rumoured to have turned 50 this year, might be marking the occasion with a cryptic farewell.
As fans eagerly await his next move, Tomkins added: “If rumours are true, we could see a three-animal mural tomorrow.”
The theory has sent shockwaves through the art world, with some speculating that Banksy’s latest works are not just random acts of creativity, but part of a meticulously planned sequence.
The pelican mural, like the four before it, carries all the hallmarks of a classic Banksy—sharp humour, clever location, and that unmistakable touch of mystery.
Artist Daniel Lloyd-Morgan, speaking at the scene of the pelican mural, offered another take.
He said: “I suspect the piece relates to the planned riots in Walthamstow earlier this week. Banksy loves to create mystery and his work often has multiple meanings.”
Meanwhile, chaos erupted earlier this week when Banksy’s wolf mural, painted on a satellite dish in Peckham, was stolen just hours after it was confirmed as authentic.
Yobs were caught on camera removing the dish, leaving fans wondering if the theft was part of Banksy’s plan or simply opportunistic looting.
One Instagram user, Adelahan, suggested the theft might have been orchestrated by Banksy himself.
He wrote: “Them stealing it was predicted. They wanted them to do so; it’s part of the display.”
And it’s not the only drama to hit Banksy’s latest works.
His elephant mural, confirmed on Tuesday, was vandalised the same day, with grey paint splattered over one of the silhouettes.
The incident has only added to the growing sense of intrigue surrounding this week’s artworks.
Banksy has always been a master of mystery, and this latest flurry of activity has once again captured the public’s imagination.
He could be critiquing the state of the world, as some fans believe or perhaps this is a prelude to a grand, final masterpiece.
Banksy expert Paul Gough, a professor at Arts University Bournemouth, thinks the artist is building up to something big.
He told The Metro: “Banksy is working towards a grand reveal or a big piece in the coming days.
“The question is how long can he sustain this, both on a creative level and in keeping his audience interested.”
Whatever the answer, Banksy’s recent works have once again demonstrated his unparalleled ability to keep the world guessing.
Whether it’s his final spray or just another chapter in his elusive career, one thing’s for sure: Banksy has us all dancing to his tune.
As we await what comes next, Londoners are left wondering—are we witnessing the last days of Banksy’s reign as the king of street art, or is this just the beginning of his next great trick.
Only time, and perhaps one more mural, will tell.
Meanwhile, it’s not the first time his work has caused a big stir up.
Controversy seems to follow his work as not too long ago the artist faced furious backlash after launching a small boat with dummy migrants over the crowd at Glastonbury in his latest stunt.
Who is Banksy?
Banksy first got noticed for spray-painting trains and walls in his home city of Bristol during the early 1990s.
Street art and graffiti can be considered criminal damage so it’s thought the artist stayed anonymous to avoid a run-in with the law.
In the beginning, his pieces were mainly created in Bristol, but in the 2000s his artworks started appearing all over the UK and other parts of the world.
Banksy chose to use stencils to create his pieces, probably because it’s a faster way to paint.
He was influenced in his early days by a French graffiti artist called Blek le Rat.
Blek le Rat is considered to be the father of stencil graffiti and people sometimes confuse the work of the two artists.
Banksy doesn’t only do street art – he has produced drawings, paintings and installation pieces.
The anonymous artist no longer sells photographs or reproductions of his street graffiti.
But his public “installations” are regularly resold, often even by removing the wall they were painted on.
He has also created his own theme park called Dismaland.
Banksy has left his memorable mark all over the world but has been most prolific in the UK.
The guerrilla artist is known to have created more than 120 works spanning three decades.
- In 2002, There is Always Hope – possibly the artist’s most famous work – appeared on the South Bank in London.
- Devolved Parliament, Banksy’s 13ft wide painting of chimpanzees in the House of Commons, hit the headlines in October 2019 when it sold at auction for £9.9million.
- GCHQ Government Spies Telephone Box was created in April 2014. The piece in Cheltenham shows three men wearing sunglasses and using listening devices to snoop on a phone box.
- In May 2020, Banksy unveiled new artwork Game Changer, which was painted on the wall of a ward at Southampton General Hospital in Hampshire.
- On July 14, 2020, Banksy returned to the London Underground with a work encouraging people to wear face masks. The work, called If You Don’t Mask, You Don’t Get, features a number of rats in pandemic-inspired poses, wearing face masks – but it was scrubbed off by cleaners.
- In October 2020, a Banksy mural appeared on the side of a building in Rothesay Avenue in Nottingham. The artwork shows a girl hula-hooping with a bicycle tyre. The mural has now been removed and sold to an Essex art gallery, disappointing local people who had hoped it would stay in the city.
- In December 2020, a Covid-inspired Banksy mural of a woman sneezing out her dentures on the side of a semi-detached home popped up on the side of a house in Bristol.
- In March 2020, Banksy confirmed an image showing a prisoner escaping from a former Reading Prison with a typewriter at the bottom of a “rope” made out of sheets of paper knotted together, was one of his works.
- In November 2022, Banksy has made his mark in Ukraine after unveiling a painting of a gymnast on the side of a tower block bombed by Russia.
- In February 2023, a new Banksy piece was confirmed after artwork showing a bruised woman pushing a man into a freezer appeared on the side of a building in Margate, Kent. The image depicted a 1950s housewife in an apron and washing-up gloves. a closer look revealed the woman had a swollen eye and a missing tooth. The artwork also incorporated a freezer – believed to have been placed up against the wall purposely – and a man’s legs sticking out as she closes the lid on him.
- In December 2023, a new Banksy artwork was removed from a south London street less than an hour after it was confirmed to be a genuine installation. The artist confirmed the artwork – a traffic stop sign covered with three aircraft said to resemble military drones – was his in a social media post shortly after midday.
- In March 2024, a new Banksy tree mural was sprayed on the side of a home in London. However, two days later images showed two streaks of white paint covering the green artwork.
