Workers arriving at the London Zoo were surprised to discover an unexpected exhibit that suggested the animals were being set free
LONDON (AP) — Early Tuesday morning, workers at the London Zoo were taken aback by an unexpected addition to their grounds: a striking new exhibit suggesting a daring escape of the zoo’s animals.
The artwork, created by the enigmatic street artist Banksy, depicted a gorilla holding up the entrance gate as birds soared and a sea lion made its getaway. Three mysterious eyes peered out from the darkened interior of the mural.
This latest creation might shed light on why Banksy’s imaginative works—ranging from a mountain goat perched on a building ledge to piranhas circling a police guard post and a rhinoceros on top of a car—have been appearing in such surprising locations across London for the past nine days.
According to Dan Simmonds, the zoo’s animal operations manager, each piece of Banksy’s art posted on Instagram has been tagged with a London Zoo hashtag. However, he was astonished to see that the artist had chosen to decorate the zoo’s own admission gate. “The essence of Banksy is that everything is a surprise,” Simmonds remarked. “We never expected one of his pieces to appear right here on our entrance shutter. It’s a wonderful surprise.”
Simmonds discovered the mural around 6:30 a.m. while starting his morning routine of feeding the animals. By that time, cyclists who frequent Regent’s Park, where the zoo is situated, were already stopping to take selfies with the new artwork.
The zoo decided to keep the roll-down shutter closed throughout the day to highlight the piece. Although the zoo is in its busy season, Banksy’s work drew a steady stream of admirers eager to photograph it.
Banksy, who first made his mark with spray-painted works in Bristol, England, is now one of the most renowned and sought-after artists worldwide. His pieces command millions at auction and frequently attract thieves and vandals. This new series has been no exception, with zoo workers having to protect the mural with a transparent cover later in the day.
The rhino painted on Monday was defaced with graffiti, and a wolf silhouette on a roof-mounted satellite dish was stolen shortly after being discovered. A big cat stretching across a dilapidated billboard was quickly removed by three men claiming to have been hired for safety reasons.
The police sentry box designed to look like a fish tank was relocated from near the Old Bailey courthouse to City of London corporate offices for protection and will eventually be put on public display.
Whether the zoo mural will be the final piece in Banksy’s series remains unclear. Simmonds expressed pride that the zoo had been chosen as a canvas for Banksy’s art. He was particularly thrilled to see the gorilla, as he had previously been a gorilla keeper himself.
Simmonds speculated that the primate in the mural might be an endangered western lowland gorilla, a subspecies housed at the zoo. He also identified one of the birds as potentially being a macaw and another figure as a bat. “As for the eyes, who knows? Maybe they’re cats peeking out,” he mused. “That’s the beauty of it. Only Banksy knows for sure.”