Animals

Animals feature widely across Banksy’s prolific street art practice, with creatures from the animal kingdom used as recurring motifs to express the artist's activist stances and biting humor. The anonymous British artist initially rose to fame when he began stenciling rats across English cities, and gained further acclaim in 2019 when his artwork featuring a cast of chimpanzees as MPs in Britain’s House of Commons, Devolved Parliament (2009), broke the artist's then-record. Moreover, Banksy has featured cheetahs, monkeys, dogs, and more in his coveted print series, including “Barcode” and “Choose Your Weapon.”

In August 2024, Banksy made a splash when he unveiled a series of animal-themed urban interventions depicting a goat perched on a ledge, three swinging monkeys, and two elephants with their trunks outstretched, leaving the Internet racing to interpret the artist's hidden message.