Banksy appears to have confirmed being behind a new artwork that has appeared on a wall in Nottingham, depicting a young girl using a bike tyre as a hula-hoop.
Residents in the area of Lenton had been speculating about the design, which appeared on the side of the AVI hair and beauty salon there earlier this week. An actual bike, minus one wheel, is locked to a post in front of the graffiti.
On Saturday, the mysterious street artist posted two pictures of the mural on the official Banksy Instagram account. A photograph also appeared on the Banksy website.
Crowds have reportedly been gathering at the site in recent days, according to the Nottingham Post.
Responding to the photographs, which have been left uncaptioned, on Instagram, one user said: “Well that Beauty Salon just went up a few million in worth.”
Another referenced the furore over the idea people in creative industries could retrain due to the coronavirus pandemic, after a government-backed advert was shared suggesting a ballet dancer could “reboot” her career by retraining in cyber security.
“Banksy’s next job could be in Bicycle repair – he just doesn’t know it yet,” the user joked.
Banksy, believed to be from Bristol, has been active since the 1990s.
The elusive street artist has been busy in recent months, with commentary on the coronavirus pandemic in the form of works painted on a Tube train, a working from home bathroom design, and images celebrating NHS heroes.
The Tube art was cleaned away before TfL realised who was behind it. Pic: @Banksy
Cleaners for Transport for London unwittingly scrubbed away the graffiti on the Tube without knowing its creator.
In August, the artist funded a rescue boat to help refugees in the Mediterranean Sea trying to reach Europe from North Africa.
Despite much speculation over Banksy’s identity, it remains one of the art world’s greatest mysteries.
In 2019, his former agent released a book of behind-the-scenes images and anecdotes of the moments that started the anonymous artist on his path to global fame.
Bizarrely, Neil Buchanan, who hosted Art Attack in the 1990s, issued a statement denying he was Banksy after a conspiracy theory identifying him as the secretive street painter went viral on social media in September.