An artwork that has almost all the markings of acclaimed anonymous street artist Banksy’s handiwork has appeared on a wall of the Reading Prison in London. The UK prison which has been abandoned since 2013 had once famously housed Irish poet and playwright Oscar Wilde and Wilde had also written one of his last poems in the jail, titled Ballad of Reading Gaol. The picture, thus has made everyone believe that it could possibly be Wilde in the wall art. It shows a prisoner during mid-escape, dangling on a rope made out of bedcovers tied to a typewriter.
There has been a steady campaign aiming to turn the derelict prison into a arts centre rather than turning it over for housing property and has been supported by several celebrities as well.
However, unlike his usual artwork, in this case, Banksy, who usually posts a photo of his creation within 24 hours of the artworks coming up, still hasn’t claimed the work as his own and thus social media users have been speculating about it. However, most seemed convinced it is the anonymous artist this time as well.
An expert on Banksy and the vice-chancellor of Arts University Professor Paul Gough reportedly told BBC that the artwork’s quality seems like done by someone who is very adept at painting up a scaffold in the middle of the night without being detected. Calling the art a very compelling piece, Gough also said that the art might be Banksy’s way to lend his support for the idea of turning the former prison into the arts centre.
All day fans and passers by have been dropping in at the site to click photos as the painted upon wall as the backdrop. Some have also been trying to look for eye-witnesses who might be able to confirm whether it was the elusive artist or not.
So your telling me someone set a ladder up against the wall of a prison to paint this and nobody seen them? ♂️ #ReadingPrison #Banksy pic.twitter.com/XcFcprs5YY
— Lee pearson Ⓜ️ (@leepearson11) March 2, 2021
Went for a lunchtime cycle into Reading to look for the potential #Banksy on the Prison wall. It lifted my mood after the PhD rejection I got in the morning! Very happy I found it (even if it isn't really Banksy) pic.twitter.com/78vRbGgE3z
— Daniella Giannitto (@DaniellaGianni2) March 2, 2021
AMAZING! Thank you #banksy if it was you. Reading is my home town. I've been lucky enough to visit the prison and love The Ballad of Reading Gaol. I really hope we win this battle, and no one ruins this beautiful piece of arthttps://t.co/WRPdFj2qrU
— Lisa Bennett ️ (@BritishButch) March 2, 2021
I really hope that painting on Reading prison is Banksy
— (@RachelNDesign) March 2, 2021
The playwright Wilde was incarcerated in the prison between 1895 and 1897 due to indecency charges after Sir John Douglas, the 9th Marquess of Queensberry had been involved in a feud with Wilde over the latter’s intimate involvement with him amid a time when homosexuality was a taboo and seen as crimes in then UK.
Banksy’s last art work had appeared on the side of a semi-detached house in Totterdown in Bristol, which was titled “Aachoo!!” and pictures a woman in a headscarf sneezing so loud that it makes her dentures fly into the air.
Read all the Latest News, Breaking News and Coronavirus News here
