Banksy’s new wall painting in Kent, which appears to have a theme of domestic abuse, has been taken down just hours after the unsuspecting artist claimed it as his work .
The street artist confirmed they were behind the artwork, which was found on the side of a wall in Margate, by sharing a series of photos of the piece on their Instagram on Tuesday.
Called Valentine’s Day Mascara, the original piece depicted a 1950s housewife wearing blue and yellow laundry gloves with a swollen eye and a missing tooth shoving her male partner into a chest freezer.
Bank | Macara Valentine’s Day, 2023
The resident of the property where the painting was created, who asked not to be named, told PA that the freezer and other items including a broken garden chair used for the artwork were “very quickly” removed and put into a truck it is at noon. Tuesday.
Discussing how she felt about the move, the tenant said: “I’m upset because it’s not very nice. It was part of the art, they should be very happy because Margate could get more attention, positive attention.
“Why did they move those parts? It’s just silly.”
She claimed that she asked the people who removed the items why they were doing that and they replied: “Someone on the council told them, they are doing the task, not the idea they had but they have to do it.”
She added: “Earlier, nobody cared if there was rubbish on the street. I mean, they were, but not quickly.
“Even if you report something to them about taking out the trash, they’re acting a week or two later, not immediately.”
The tenant also said her landlord tried to send people to protect the artwork but were unable to do so before the pieces were removed.
In a series of photographs posted on Banksyand Taking to the Instagram account, the street artist captioned the piece “Valentine’s Day Mascara” and zoomed in twice to show a close-up of the woman’s smiling but stricken face.
Speculation about the post suggested the Bristol-born artist is referring to violence against women on Valentine’s Day.
In December, the anonymous graffiti artist announced that they had created 50 screen prints that would be sold to raise money for a charity supporting the people of Ukraine.
Banksy previously confirmed they had spent time in Ukraine after posting a video of an artist spray-painting a design in the war-torn country and talking to locals.
Thanet District Council has been contacted for comment.