Reuters Investigation Identifies Banksy as Robin Gunningham

A Reuters investigation has reportedly identified the anonymous street artist Banksy as Robin Gunningham, also known as David Jones, a man in his fifties from Bristol. The journalists conducted extensive research, including traveling to Ukraine to investigate recent works. The article traces Banksy's career from his early humorous, anti-authority graffiti in the late 1990s and 2000s, which included designing the album cover for Blur's 2003 'Think Tank', to his later, more overtly political works. These later projects include a 2014 mural in Clacton-on-Sea commenting on immigration, a 2016 Brexit-related mural in Dover, the 2017 Walled Off Hotel in East Jerusalem, a 2020 migrant rescue ship in the Mediterranean, and recent works in Ukraine. The article questions the continued relevance of the artist's anonymity and critiques the evolution of his work from subversive street art to mainstream political commentary.