Camera phone photo captures secretive artist, prankster at work in U.K.

An artist and prankster in the U.K. whose artwork can fetch tens of thousands of pounds — but who is careful not to reveal his identity — appears to have been photographed in the act of painting by a camera phone user, a detailed article in The Times reports.

The artist, known as “Banksy” (whose real name might be Robin or Robert Banks), is photographed extending double yellow lines from a road in East London to a wall of a house to create a large yellow flower.

This latest work could be a dig at the local borough council that has publicized its intention to clean his graffiti from the area, the article says.

Although some images have been published that purport to be the artist, the camera phone photo is believed to be the first image showing him at work.

Artistic pranks

The Times says, Banksy is well known for his pranks, “which have included releasing an inflatable Guantanamo prisoner doll in Disneyland.  The British Museum took eight days to realise that Banksyus Maximus, a rock depicting a Stone Age hunter with a shopping trolley, was not a genuine artefact.

“This summer he made a Stonehenge-style circle at the Glastonbury Festival out of portable toilets, and he once painted a hole with blue sky poking through the Palestinian side of the West Bank wall.”

Comments

[jordi]

someone has already scribbled next to it, message says "prosecute him? come for me 2", see here http://www.flickr.com/photos/12614773@N07/1817776402/

[Alan A. Reiter]

Hi Jordi,

Thanks for posting that Flickr photo.

And, the authorities might scrub off the flower and extended yellow lines.

As the saying goes, Sic transit gloria mundi. That is, fame is fleeting.