Banksy: New animal-themed artwork at London Zoo unveiled after rhino mural defaced by balaclava-wearing man

The artwork, which the anonymous graffiti artist shared on his official Instagram account, ties into his recent theme of depicting animals scattered across London, outside their natural habitats.

This latest installation comes shortly after Banksy’s previous piece, a striking image of a rhino mounting a broken down silver Nissan Micra with a traffic cone on its bonnet on Charlton’s Westmoor Street. Unfortunately, that piece was defaced just hours after it was revealed. By Tuesday, August 13, the car had reportedly been removed, leaving behind the vandalised artwork, now marred by a tag in white spray paint.

A video obtained by BBC News shows a man wearing a black balaclava approaching the artwork and spray-painting a white tag over it, much to the dismay of the crowd gathered at the scene. Onlookers were heard pleading with the vandal, with one voice asking, "Why did you do that? Why did you do it?"

Banksy has been unveiling new artworks daily on his Instagram around 1pm since August 5, each one featuring animals in unexpected urban settings. Prior to the rhino piece, Banksy’s Sunday creation depicted piranhas in a police sentry box near London’s Old Bailey court, which has since been removed by local authorities for preservation.

The street artist seems to be making a statement with this series, using animals to challenge the boundaries between nature and urban environments. His earlier works in this series include a goat perched on a wall, silhouettes of elephants, monkeys, a wolf, pelicans, and a cat, all of which have appeared at various locations around London.

However, not all of these pieces have remained in place; for example, a stretching cat on an advertising hoarding in Cricklewood was removed hours after its unveiling, sparking disappointment among onlookers.

Similarly, a howling wolf artwork on a satellite dish in Peckham was taken down less than an hour after its reveal. Banksy’s team has clarified that the artist is not connected to the removal of these pieces and has no knowledge of their current whereabouts.

Despite the fleeting nature of some of his works, his artwork at Bonners Fish Bar in Walthamstow, showing a pelican catching a fish, has drawn particular attention. The fish and chip shop, which had announced it would close temporarily in early August, expressed their gratitude on Instagram.

The shop said: "We’re over the moon that Banksy decided to choose our little fish and chip shop in wonderful Walthamstow and love the design." Although they had no prior knowledge of Banksy’s plans, the shop owners are grateful for the unexpected gift.