Two new artworks by Banksy have appeared at the Barbican centre in central London.
The murals, inspired by the upcoming Jean-Michel Basquiat exhibition at the centre, were confirmed as genuine on the artist’s verified Instagram account.
Announcing the new artworks in a series of posts on Instagram, Banksy said: “Major new Basquiat show opens at the Barbican – a place that is normally very keen to clean any graffiti from its walls.”
The first image, which is possibly mocking the exhibition, as Basquiat was originally a graffiti artist, is of a ferris wheel with people queueing up at a ticket booth underneath. Crown motifs, common in some of Basquiat’s art, replace the wheel’s passenger cars.
The second post is captioned: “Portrait of Basquiat being welcomed by the Metropolitan police – an (unofficial) collaboration with the new Basquiat show.”
It is perhaps a comment how Basquiat, who was one of the first famous black American artists, would be treated if he was working today, given how black people are still much more likely to be targeted for stop and search than white.In the second mural, which is clearly inspired by Basquiat’s Boy and Dog in a Johnnypump – one of his most famous artworks – Banksy has portrayed police officers searching and questioning the boy figure as the dog looks on.
The exhibition, which is the first large-scale UK show of Basquiat’s pioneering neo-expressionism, opens on Wednesday at the arts centre. It will feature more than 100 works alongside rare photography, film and archive material.
It comes nearly 30 years after the artist, DJ, poet and musician, who was also Madonna’s former boyfriend, died from a heroin overdose.
Banksy, who often makes political points with his art, is also known to support causes he cares about.
In May, a Brexit-inspired mural showing a metalworker chipping away at a star on the EU flag appeared in Dover.
Last week he donated the £205,000 raised from the sale of his latest work to human rights charity Reprieve and Campaign Against Arms Trade. Civilian Drone Strike, which depicts a trio of Predator drones bombing a child’s drawing of a house, was auctioned at Art The Arms Fair, a five-day exhibition coinciding with the Defence and Security Equipment International arms fair in east London last week.
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