A building owner in Kew Green, southwest London, has removed a mural by secretive street artist Banksy in preparation for the building’s refurbishment. The owner’s representatives have stated in a recent announcement that they removed the mural “carefully” to “ensure its conservation and protection” and that they intend to explore options for displaying the mural again after completing the refurbishment.
Reportedly, the artwork was removed by art conservators with specialized expertise in the removal of street art. Nevertheless, the disappearance of Banksy’s mural has renewed discussion about the transitory nature of street art and the challenges of balancing urban development and renewal with the preservation of cultural artifacts.
The Mystery of the Precarious Goat
The mural depicted a goat perched on an extremely narrow ledge amid tumbling rocks. When the artwork appeared in August 2024, there was originally a CCTV camera directed at the goat. As is his usual practice, Banksy took credit for the work on his Instagram, but since he didn’t include a caption, the goat’s sudden appearance on an otherwise unremarkable exterior wall sparked debate over its significance.
Some suggested it symbolized the fragile condition of the environment or the human species in the face of climate change and global conflict. Others saw the goat’s balancing act in front of a street camera as a metaphor for the pervasiveness of surveillance and the loss of privacy, even in the most remote aspects of life. Alternatively, Banksy’s intent may simply have been to provoke discussion, which the goat certainly did, quickly becoming a local landmark.
The Mystery of Banksy
Banksy’s street art has previously appeared on walls and bridges in urban environments around the world and even on the West Bank barrier in Israel. Some of his most renowned creations include “Girl with Balloon” and “There Is Always Hope.” Like the balancing goat, many of his works feature eye-catching stenciled images accompanied by subversive captions offering social critique, particularly directed at war and capitalism.
Banksy has also created several exhibitions, including “Dismaland” in Weston-super-Mare, England—a dystopian theme park—and a documentary film, “Exit Through the Gift Shop,” which made an impression at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival and received an Academy Award nomination for Best Documentary Feature.
Despite receiving considerable acclaim and notoriety, Banksy has remained an anonymous figure. His works usually appear during the night, revealing themselves to astonished and excited onlookers in the morning. Banksy first began his graffiti art in the 1990s in Bristol as a member of the DryBreadZ Crew. His early work featured freehand graffiti, but he soon adopted the stenciling technique that has since become his distinctive and recognizable style. Allegedly, Banksy switched to stencils to complete his street creations more quickly and reduce the risk of being seen.
The Mystery of the Mural’s Future
Now, followers of Banksy’s work are presented with a new mystery—will the goat return? Although representatives of the building’s owner, Boss & Co. Gunmakers, have teased that it may, the Fine Art Restoration Company, whose specialists removed the mural, declined to comment when approached by BBC News. However, the conservators have stated that the building’s owners recognize the artistic and social importance of the goat and that they “appreciate the community’s interest in and affection for the artwork.”
Banksy’s own representative has also declined to comment.
The Kew Green building’s refurbishment, deemed necessary by the owner due to the building’s deteriorating condition, had been approved well before the arrival of Banksy’s precarious goat on the structure’s wall. Whether the goat will later reappear at its previous location or elsewhere in the city remains to be seen.
