What do monkeys, wolves, pelicans, goats, cats and elephants have in common?
We are not in a zoo – these are all animals that Banksy painted in London this week.
Each day, the elusive street artist unveiled a new piece of art in a different location in the capital and posted it on Instagram at 1pm (BST).
Banksy, famous for his enigmatic, often powerful artwork, has chosen not to caption his animals online.
He also didn’t explain why they are all painted in the same black stencil style.
His agent simply told the BBC that there was “no comment on the subject” and added that “perhaps” more animal paintings would follow.
This has led people to speculate about their meaning.
James Peak, presenter of the BBC’s The Banksy Story, says the message behind the paintings is less obvious than some of his earlier works.
“It’s interesting that the meaning is more hidden than usual,” he tells the BBC.
“There is often a clearer and more immediate message in his works: Maybe this time he wants us to find out for ourselves?”
Peak adds that Banksy’s animals show his typical use of negative space, saying he “uses the built environment as part of the art” to “create maximum impact with minimal effort.”
Peak also explains that the silhouettes of most of the animals this week are plain black, “without any embellishments or shading.”
“The monkeys look like they are swinging from the bridge,” he notes, “the pelicans are stealing the fish from the fish shop.”
Banksy’s works are often political.
During the Glastonbury Festival, he launched an inflatable boat full of dolls in life jackets during a performance by Bristol-based post-punk band Idles. The incident was controversial, with then-Conservative Home Secretary James Cleverly calling it “disgusting”.
Bansky replied: “The actual boat I am funding, the MV Louise Michel, rescued 17 unaccompanied children from the Mediterranean last night. As punishment, the Italian authorities have detained it – which I find abhorrent and unacceptable.”
But this time he remained silent.
Riot or environmental message?
Fans’ theories online ranged from claiming the goat had something to do with the Israel-Gaza war to comparing the animals to far-right rioters across Britain.
Peak also points to “other theories that suggest all animals may be threatened with extinction or on the verge of extinction.”
“The monkeys may be escaping gentrification and further development in the Brick Lane area. The elephants may be isolated and lonely,” he said.
The goat could symbolize that the Palestinians are losing their footing – or it could suggest that “we are distracted or too preoccupied with the ‘greatest of all time’ and the Olympics instead of the big global issues.”
Vanessa Thorpe, arts correspondent for the Observer, said Banksy simply hopes his new works will “cheer people up with a moment of unexpected amusement” and demonstrate “the human capacity for creative play rather than destruction and negativity”.
But what do people on the street think?
At 8am BST on Friday, Brick Lane is relatively quiet, with none of the throngs of tourists who normally come here for the food, fashion and street art.
But there are some who take advantage of the lack of traffic and stop in the middle of the road to take selfies and photos.
The three primates on the railway tracks are associated with the three wise monkeys of the Japanese proverb: “See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil”.
But in Banksy’s work, the monkeys do not cover their eyes, ears or mouths.
A group of women are excited about the artwork and a passerby stops and offers to take a photo of them together.
They tell the BBC that they love Banksy because of the mystery surrounding his identity (Banksy’s identity has always remained a secret, although “The Banksy Story” revealed a 2003 interview in which the artist confirmed his name was Robbie).
“I love his work because it’s secret, it’s covert and it’s always current – it’s not random,” says Caz.
“I think it could be a statement in the context of current events in the country,” says Sally.
About five minutes later, another man stops to take a photo with a professional camera. He says he is touring London to capture the artwork that has surfaced so far.
A few hours later, there is a bit more going on in Walthamstow. The fifth Banksy painting appeared there on Friday: two fish-eating pelicans on the side of a fish and chip shop.
The official announcement on social media was not made until 1:00 p.m., but the alleged work was already circulating on the Internet.
When I arrived, there was a small crowd of people gathered there, mostly TV reporters and excited locals, asking each other if the work was real.
“It adds character to the area. I’ve never seen people standing like that before,” says Hather Ali, one of the people who asked if it was a real Banksy painting.
He lives next door to the fish shop and says he will watch the security camera footage from the previous evening to see if he can see the mysterious artist in action.
After the initial work in Richmond, media published images of two men in a cherry picker – a mechanical platform at the end of a hydraulic lifting system.
One of the masked men is probably Banksy.
Marcia McKnight has lived on the street for two decades and can see the artwork from her home.
“I’m in seventh heaven, this is fantastic for my street, for the neighbourhood here,” she says, adding that it is “fantastic” for the family-run fish and chip shop.
“I have lived here for 20 years and have witnessed the regeneration (of Walthamstow).
“So it’s actually nice that we have a work of art and not the construction of a skyscraper or apartment block,” she adds.
Marcia believes the artwork was created following the anti-racism rally in Walthamstow on Wednesday – thousands of people took to the streets, chanting, clapping and preaching a message of peace.
“I suspect that’s the point, because Walthamstow hosted one of the biggest rallies against the far right.”
Although many people believe the work has something to do with the unrest in Britain, Peak still believes it may contain an environmental message.
Throughout his career, Banksy has created works that focus on the environment – in 2002, for example, he designed a poster for Greenpeace featuring characters from The Jungle Book.
In 2003, he was responsible for a Grim Reaper painted on the side of Thekla, a boat and nightclub in Bristol.
Or, says Peak, the latest artworks might be simpler than any theories.
“Maybe it’s just because he loves drawing animals and is having a great summer in London, proving he can still turn up and deliver something the world will be talking about before disappearing into the night again.”
