Renowned street artist Banksy has confirmed his latest creation: swimming piranhas painted onto a City of London Police sentry box. The artwork, discovered on Sunday morning, has transformed the glass-fronted box on Ludgate Hill—located near The Old Bailey and St Paul’s Cathedral—into an illusionary aquarium.
This new piece marks Banksy’s seventh artwork revealed in London over the past week, following previous works featuring a goat, monkeys, elephants, a wolf, pelicans, and a cat. The piranha painting stands out with its intricate design, seemingly created with translucent spray paint.
Throughout the day, crowds flocked to photograph the new artwork until barriers were set up to restrict access. The City of London Police acknowledged the “criminal damage” to the sentry box. Consequently, they are in discussions with the City of London Corporation, which owns the box. A corporation worker blocked off the area and advised spectators to avoid standing on the nearby road.
A spokesperson for the City of London Corporation stated, “We are currently working through options to preserve the artwork.” Banksy.
Police originally used these sentry boxes, installed in the 1990s, to monitor traffic and prevent IRA attacks.
Local Reactions
A nearby resident described the piranhas as “rather beautiful in the sun” and noted the artwork’s subtle charm.
Artist Daniel Lloyd-Morgan, who has documented most of Banksy’s recent works, commented, “It’s really uplifting for people in London at the moment. There’s a buzz around his work. It’s nice to capture that as I do the people as well. It’s not just about the artwork, it’s about the whole environment he’s creating; it becomes a sort of work of art itself—what happens to it, people steal it or take it away.”
Lloyd-Morgan, who had planned a holiday for Monday, decided to postpone it to stay on top of Banksy ongoing revelations.
Banksy’s Week of Animal-Themed Art
This latest piece adds to a series of animal-themed works that began on Monday with a goat near Kew Bridge. The following days saw a touching image of two elephants in Chelsea, three monkeys in Brick Lane, a howling wolf on a satellite dish in Peckham, two pelicans in Walthamstow, and a stretching cat on a billboard in Cricklewood.
However, some of these artworks have faced challenges: contractors removed the billboard with the cat due to safety concerns, and someone painted over the elephants with stripes.
Additionally, masked individuals stole the wolf from the satellite dish shortly after its reveal.
Each day, the artist officially announced the works on his Instagram page.
