Since his stencil drawings first hit the walls of the U.K., guerilla graffiti artist Banksy has been as much a public figure as a figment of our collective imagination. To some, he's created innovative pop art (Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt shelled out £200,000 on the clandestine artist's works in 2006), to others, he's continually defaced public property. But everyone can agree on one thing about Banksy: no one knows who the hell the guy is. If claims from the U.K.'s Mail on Sunday are true, however, the threads of his mystique might soon unravel.
The paper said the man in question is one Robin Gunningham, a 34-year-old middle-class Bristol native. The paper pointed to a 2004 photo of a man in Jamaica next to a spray can, which the Mail got a few old friends to identify as Gunningham.
Luke Egan, for instance, an artist who has exhibited with Banksy admitted to the paper that he had lived with Gunningham, after previously denying this fact. As for confirming the identity of Banksy, Egan said, "Well, he wasn't then."
When questioned about the artist's identity, Scott Nurse, an old schoolmate of Gunningham's, told the paper: "He was one of three people in my year who were extremely talented at art. I am not at all surprised if he is Banksy."
As for the Banky's crew, mum's the word. "We get these calls all the time," a Banksy spokeswoman informed BBC News. "I'll say what I always say: I never confirm or deny these stories." Gunningham's parents have not helped the case either: his father denies that the man in the photo is his son, his mother denies that she has a son in the first place.
Dubious as those reports may be, the Mail isn't the first to write about the photo. The Evening Standard first reported on the photo in 2004, and The New Yorker discussed it again in 2007.
Banky's work has been largely defined by his bold, outdoor stencil graffiti, though he has exhibited paintings and other mediums of art as well. He's often prone to display politicized messages and has pulled a number of stunts. Over the years, he's placed a life-sized statue of a Guantanamo Bay detainee, and has mounted his own work alongside other, more mainstream/legitimate exhibits.
Related links:
BBC: Bristol: People: Banksy's Bristol
The New Yorker: Banksy Was Here - The invisible man of graffiti art
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Not entirely true... Gunningham was named as Banksy in a youtube video last year.