Urban Art Grafitti Banksy Puzzles
This powerful graffiti image first appeared as a large format stencil on Jerusalem’s West Bank wall, which separates Palestine from Israel. In the image, a young protester is in the act of hurling what you would expect to be a grenade, but instead is a bunch of flowers. As is typical of Banksy's works, the image portrays a paradox of emotions, context, and symbolism that is both jarring and thought-provoking: it reminds us that peace and beauty can be powerful weapons against corruption and conflict.
This poignant piece painted on a canal wall in Venice’s Dorsoduro district shows a young migrant child wearing a life jacket and holding a neon pink flare in the air. The positioning of the stencil makes it appear as though the child is actually wading in the waters, while the bright pink flames spilling out of the flare stand out the way they might if you were seeing them across a dark, cold ocean. It is one of Banksy’s several pieces of street art that address the global refugee crisis.
In Peaceful Hearts Doctor, an old-fashioned doctor holds a stethoscope to a heart shape that has been graffitied onto the wall in a freehand style. The mural appeared on the walls of a bakery in San Francisco’s Chinatown in 2010 and has since been covered with plexiglass in order to preserve the art.
Banksy Tunnel is a 300-meter graffiti-covered road that runs beneath Waterloo station in London. The project began in 2008, when the celebrated artist invited other artists from around the world to share their work on the walls of this tunnel road. What was once a dark and dingy street is now filled with colorful images of political expression, clever cartoons, and artistic slogans. Although graffiti is illegal in London, Banksy Tunnel has become an authorized graffiti area, with artists continually contributing to its ever-changing walls.
Banksy’s Thug For Life Bunny depicts a friendly-looking cartoon bunny touting a cigar and wearing a gold chain necklace and rings that would typically be more associated with hip hop culture than a hopping rabbit. It is typical of the artist to juxtapose innocent imagery with more mature concepts, often calling into question the messages that children are receiving from mainstream media and culture. Thug For Life Bunny has since been painted over.
