Banksy Street Art Appears in Finsbury Park

A piece of street at by Banksy has appeared off Hornsey Road in Finsbury Park. Making use of a bare tree, recently pruned. It features a person holding a pump and a paint sprayer whilst looking up at a wall which they’ve just sprayed green.

Finsbury Park Banksy

From afar the positioning of the tree makes sense. It is bare of leaves and the newly green background gives the illusion of growth. Banksy does not tend to explain his artworks but the intention can be guessed at. The idea being that it needs an artist to create a green canopy to replace the leaves that the tree would otherwise have.

Environmentally Focused

This sense of re-creating in paint what should be naturally produced in nature gives a sense that this is an environmentally focused work. Connotations around climate change and the fragility of the natural world can easily be guessed at.

Placement

Much of Banksy’s work makes use of the environment around it. In this case, it wouldn’t work without the pruned tree. The fact that behind is such a convenient wall just ripe for painting, makes the opportunity just right in terms of location. It’s something that he’s been doing more and more with his artworks. Creating much more than just a two dimensional image.

Background

One of the notable aspects of this latest work is in the way the background has been painted. Quite possibly this will have utilised a pressure spray or a modified fire extinguisher. Filled with paint and then re-pressurised it is a technique used by graffiti artists to create mass coverage and quickly. Given the size of the wall and the speed in which Banksy no doubt wanted to paint the piece it’s perhaps a logical option. Shoreditch Street Art Tours gives this some more consideration in their excellent article here.

Banksy on the Doorstep

These days news of a new Banksy travels fast. One of the first on the scene this time was local artist Medea Yankova. An artist known for her sketches from life which capture moments in time. She was delighted by the discovery and immediately got set to painting it. After all it’s not everyday you wake to find a Banksy on your doorstep.

Multi-Layered

“This Banksy piece, like all his pieces, is multi-layered” said Medea. “There is room for interpretation, But the messages always end up to be touching on important topics to people. Environment, Politics, Peace, Love, Solidarity, Freedom, Human Rights”. Noting that the tree itself has been controlled and that it’s crown has been removed. “The whole installation evokes pain” she tells me. “A tree which is manipulated… a crown which won’t be that lush and beautiful”. An attempt perhaps by the artist to bring it back to life.

The Banksy artwork in Finsbury Park appeared on the morning of 17 March 2024. It can be found on a street just off Hornsey Road. All photos used in this piece are courtesy of Medea Yankova and you can learn more about her artworks in our ‘Artists of the East End’ interview with her here.

For more Inspiring City articles you might like, take a look at…

• Where to find Banksy Art in the UK
• Bill or Banksy – Story of a Fake Banksy
• Banksy’s Walled Off Hotel in Bethlehem