Daily Mail Unmasks Banksy
This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.
The identity of the elusive graffiti artist known only by his tag, Banksy, has been discovered by The Daily Mail, the British newspaper claims.
Using a 2004 photograph of Banksy painting a wall in Jamaica, the newspaper has identified the artist as Rob Gunningham, a 34-year-old from Bristol who attended the Bristol Cathedral School. Former classmates of Mr. Gunningham confirmed that the man in the photo, known to be Banksy, is Mr. Gunningham.
However, a spokeswoman for Banksy told the BBC that she would not confirm or deny the supposedly uncovered identity and discouraged people from believing The Mail, saying, “We get these calls all the time.”
Banksy has marked public spaces with his politically charged images worldwide and has exhibited in New York’s Vanina Holasek Gallery. His subject matter ranges from Guantanamo Bay detainees to children holding flowers. Banksy has been adamant about concealing his identity, telling Swindle magazine, “It’s a pretty safe bet that the reality of me would be a crushing disappointment to a couple 15-year-old kids out there.”
