Last week people started spotting wall paintings in various locations in Ukraine. They heavily resembled the artistic style of Banksy, the mysterious British street artist who speaks out about social issues through his images.
It has been confirmed that these wall paintings were indeed left by Banksy as he revealed in a video on Instagram showing not only his work, but bringing attention to the war crimes committed against Ukraine.
The enigmatic street artist Banksy is back again after over a year-long break and this time he visited Ukraine
Image credits: banksyfilm
Bored Panda has followed Banksy’s appearances for more than a decade now and his mysterious aura still attracts as well as his powerful messages that he broadcasts through his art.
This time is no different and he chose to address the biggest war in Europe since 1945 that started after Russian military forces crossed the Ukrainian border. It all started on February 24th this year and the war is still in full force, but Ukrainian soldiers liberating their towns glimmer with hope that they will come out victorious.
Image credits: banksyfilm
Image credits: banksyfilm
Although the hope is bright, it’s hard not to see the damage that the war is doing to the country as people are losing their homes, family members, their schools, places they went for entertainment and to relax.
Banksy visited Ukraine in November and his art was spotted last week in places like the capital Kyiv, the suburb of Irpin and the town of Borodyanka, all of which suffered from Russian bombardments.
He left his artwork in cities that were heavily affected by Russian bombardments such as Kyiv, Irpin and Borodyanka
Image credits: banksyfilm
Image credits: banksyfilm
On November 17, the artist shared a video on his Instagram and on YouTube confirming that he was the author of those murals. In the video, he showed a bit of him painting the walls, but focused more on the context of his art, which is ruins that were caused by humans, by neighbors, by a nation that liked to say they are brothers.
There were also a couple of short conversations with regular Ukrainians sharing their experience and their feelings at the moment in the video. It is interesting to note that this time, Banksy focused on depicting those people in his art.
Bored Panda contacted Sebastien Laboureau, an independent art advisor based in Miami and author of Banksy Explained who is also an urban art specialist. He told us that it was a matter of time until we saw Bansky in Ukraine as he had been in war zones before. The only question was when and where.
The expert believes that knowing Banksy he should be interested in this type of conflict and would want to comment on it because of how unfair the war and the invasion is. But however dramatic the situation is, Sebastien still sees a bit of humor in the artist’s murals as well.
The art among the ruins that once were apartment buildings, people's offices or kindergartens highlights how destructive war is
Image credits: banksyfilm
Image credits: banksyfilm
All of the 7 murals feature people, assumedly Ukrainians. There is an older man taking a bath and this image is on a wall in an apartment building that is now unlivable. A couple of other murals show gymnasts balancing on the ruins of completely destroyed buildings.
You could interpret it in a few different ways. It may mean the destroyed dreams of young people who aspired to compete in the Olympics one day or they could represent the Ukrainian nation trying to keep their feet on the ground while Earth is shattering under them.
They represent the crushed dreams of Ukrainians, their strength and resilience as well as the desire to keep fighting
Image credits: banksyfilm
Image credits: banksyfilm
A mural in Borodyanka depicts a child throwing a man on the floor during what seems to be a judo match. People can see the man’s resemblance to Vladimir Putin, officially known as President of Russia, who many people would call a dictator. This connection was made because earlier this year, his honorary black judo belt was revoked by World Taekwondo.
Another politically charged image shows a military truck that usually would be carrying a nuclear warhead, but Banksy seems to have incorporated an already existing graffiti of a penis in its place.
One mural piqued a particular interest as it is said to depict Putin being thrown on the floor as he also once had a black judo belt
Image credits: banksyfilm
Image credits: banksyfilm
Image credits: banksy
Although these murals are the first ones dedicated to Ukraine, Banksy’s art already helped the country at the beginning of the war. In March, one of his anti-war pieces of art, titled CND Soldiers, that he painted in 2005, was sold in an auction for £81,000 ($97,000). The money was donated to Okhmatdyt Children's Hospital in Kyiv.
Ukrainians appreciated the donation then and they appreciate the art now. Ukrainians traveled to see the art with their own eyes and Reuters managed to speak with Alina Mazur, a 31-year-old who came to Borodyanka from Kyiv. She said, “This is such a historic moment for our country that people like Banksy and other famous figures are coming here and showing the world what Russia has done to us.”
Sebastien believes that Banksy's art is influential and meaningful not only for Ukrainians, "What he did is very impactful in some ways because he has a lot of followers, he’s very well-known. People think when they see the visuals and people think about those situations, dramatic situations."
Other murals featured gymnasts, a man bathing, and children playing, referring to the everyday that Ukrainians were deprived of
Image credits: banksy
Image credits: banksy
People in the comments of the video were also moved by the art and were grateful for the support and for not getting tired of speaking up about it all these months later as every gesture helps Ukrainians to continue standing against Russia and making them leave.
What do you think of this art? Banksy didn't comment on his work, so we are interested to hear what your interpretations are. Also, if you would like to donate to Ukraine, Blue and Yellow is a trustworthy organization, as well as The Bank of Ukraine.
People in the comments were grateful to Banksy for showing support and not allowing people to forget about Ukraine
