Green-fingered Banksys artwork found to be defaced

Just days after the residents of Finsbury Park welcomed their own original Banksy, the artwork was found defaced with white paint.

Over the weekend a unique piece of art was found to have been left by the street artist Banksy, green paint had been showered across the side of a residential building to recreate the foliage of a bare-boned cherry tree that sits close by. The paint was accompanied by a 2-dimensional stencil of a woman holding a canister as though to have sprayed the paint herself.

Images from the official Instagram of Banksy - @banksy

Banksy is said to be a British Street artist whose identity is still unknown to this day, His early work was largely freehand and he was known to use stencils on occasion, the artist made the switch in the late 90s to predominantly stencil work. His work has been described as striking and often linked to political themes, criticising war, capitalism and greed.

Photos are taken from the official Banksy Instagram - @Banksy

An Islington Council spokesperson said:

"Culture is a powerful way to tell meaningful stories and we welcome this artwork in Islington, a borough that celebrates creativity.

"This fantastic piece from Banksy has sparked a real buzz across Islington and beyond, and we very much want the artwork to stay for people to enjoy.

Islington Council's graffiti removal team is aware of the artwork and won't remove it. The council has just updated their culture strategy and is looking forward to seeing more creativity, culture and public artworks that highlight important stories and messages.

Three days after the anonymous street artist's newest mural was greeted with open arms by the community it was reported that in the night someone threw white paint across the image in an attempt to distort and damage the work of the British street artist.

Following the act of vandalism on the mural the council has stated:

It's sad to see the piece has been defaced. When the mural first arrived in Islington, we moved quickly to put in place temporary measures to protect it and manage the crowds, such as installing fencing and having visits from Park Patrol officers.

“We are discussing future solutions with the homeowner, to enable everyone to enjoy the artwork while protecting it, the tree, and the surrounding area. We’re also in the process of installing a CCTV camera. 

“This is a really powerful piece, which highlights the vital role that trees play in our communities and in tackling the climate emergency.

The new arrival to North London sparked conversation leading to many people approaching social media platforms such as 'X' to tweet their thoughts

"Snapped the “Banksy” on my morning run but need to go back and take a better angle later! Nice to have some excitement in the neighbourhood!

and another voice was the Labour MP for North Islington Jeremy Corbyn;

"Banksy has come to Islington! What wonderful artwork, proving there is hope for our natural world everywhere."

Photo taken from Jeremy Corbyn X account - @jeremycorbyn

The artwork was received warmly by so many leaving the community of Finsbury Park asking why someone would want to deface what is being seen as a turning point for the area.