Banksy Identity Reportedly Revealed After New Investigation
The identity of the mystery street artist Banksy may have finally been uncovered.
According to a new investigation by Reuters, the elusive artist is reportedly a man named Robin Gunningham, a graffiti artist born in Bristol in 1973, who later changed his name to David Jones.
Keep reading to find out more…
Banksy has remained anonymous since first appeared on the art scene in the ’80s, rapidly becoming one of the most famous street artists in the world with works like “Girl With Balloon” and “Napalm.”
The investigation by Reuters reportedly examined U.S. court documents, police records, photos and interviews with dozens of sources while looking into the mystery artist’s identity.
According to the report, investigators spoke with residents in Ukrainian towns where Banksy murals appeared in 2022, including a piece on a damaged building in the village of Horenka. The team heard from a resident that “two men” painted the mural.
They also looked into speculation that Massive Attack frontman Robert Del Naja was Banksy, but he is not considered to be the artist himself following the investigation, but possibly a collaborator.
Banksy‘s lawyer Mark Stephens denied the claims in a statement, saying he “does not accept that many of the details contained within your enquiry are correct.”
He also urged Reuters not to publish this report, adding that the artist has “been subjected to fixated, threatening and extremist behaviour.”
His lawyer argued that working “anonymously or under a pseudonym serves vital societal interests. It protects freedom of expression by allowing creators to speak truth to power without fear of retaliation, censorship or persecution – particularly when addressing sensitive issues such as politics, religion or social justice.”
Reuters considered the privacy plea, but concluded that “the public has a deep interest in understanding the identity and career of a figure with his profound and enduring influence on culture, the art industry and international political discourse. In so doing, we applied the same principle Reuters uses everywhere.” Read the full report.
There was also new Banksy art unveiled in 2020.
