Local residents have called on the council to protect the street art which appeared on a garage in the Taibach area.
World-famous street artist Banksy is believed to have visited Port Talbot in Wales, leaving a new artwork behind that appears to comment on the town’s industrial heritage.
The painting appeared on two walls of a garage in the Taibach area overnight and shows a child playing in the falling ash and smoke from a fire in a skip.
The owner of the garage, Ian Lewis, 55, a steelworker for the town’s Tata Steel steelworks, said he first saw the artwork when images began to spread on Facebook on Tuesday evening, and had been guarding it ever since.
The father-of-one said: “At first I didn’t really think much of it. I didn’t even know if it was my garage. But then I had a look and saw it was.
It has not yet been confirmed that the artwork is by the elusive street artist (@RHoneyJones/PA)
“I thought it was good, but I didn’t think it was a Banksy. It’s now gone viral, and there’s just been an explosion (in interest).
“I didn’t know much about Banksy up until about last year. A friend visited Bristol and she showed me some photographs she’d taken of his work.”
Mr Lewis said he thought his hometown was chosen for the artwork due to headlines over air pollution due to the steelworks.
In May the World Heath Organisation had to apologise after it admitted figures identifying Port Talbot as the most polluted town in the UK were wrong.
Online photo
The global body said Port Talbot’s air pollution was measured at 9.6853 micrograms, just under half of the figure it had originally given the town, and below WHO national guideline of 10 micrograms.
Mr Lewis said he had “no idea” what his plans were with regards to the artwork.
On Wednesday afternoon workers for Neath Port Talbot County Borough Council erected metal fencing around the garage wall.
“It’s amazing, an incredible addition to Port Talbot,” said Rachel Honey-Jones, 33, who lives in The Mumbles on the other side of Swansea Bay.
“Everything about it is political messaging, the way the boy has been drawn, the positioning near the steelworks, the fact it was done just after the (Severn Bridge) tolls went down.
“If it’s not Banksy then it’s a very similar artist,” she added.
The secretive street artist, believed to be based in Bristol, usually posts new work to his website or social media, but the Port Talbot piece has yet to make an appearance.
Black dust from the town’s steelworks covered houses, cars and pets in the area in July, a possible inspiration for the artwork.
Residents on social media have been cheered by the addition to their neighbourhood, but Ms Honey-Jones warned that the artwork should be protected by the council.
“People have already taken sledgehammers to it and tried to throw paint on it,” she said, referencing an artist friend who was tipped off to the location overnight and stayed to keep guard.
“It will bring visitors and trade and tourism to the county so it really does need to be protected,” said Ms Honey-Jones.
A spokesman for Neath Port Talbot Council said: “The Council is sending officers to liaise with the property holder to assist in protecting this artwork.
“However it must be remembered that the artwork is on private property and has not yet been confirmed that the artist is Banksy.”
LONDON (AP) — It was nice while it lasted.
An environmentally themed mural by elusive street artist Banksy that appeared last week on a London street has been encased in plastic and surrounded by fencing after an apparent act of vandalism.
The work is on a four-story wall near a public housing project. Beside a real and severely pruned cherry tree, the artist stenciled a small figure holding a pressure hose. Swathes of green paint across the wall stand in for the tree's absent leaves.
The work quickly attracted crowds including Banksy fans from around the world. Two days later, it was splashed with white paint.
The mural was then covered in transparent plastic by the building's owner, and a sign appeared saying the area was under video surveillance.
On Wednesday, workers began to erect wooden boards around the site.
The local authority, Islington Council, said it was fencing off the site to protect the art and residents from the impact of visitors.
People look at a new Banksy painting on a wall in London, Monday, March 18, 2024. A new Banksy mural drew crowds to a London street on Monday, even before the elusive graffiti artist confirmed that the work was his. The artwork in the Finsbury Park neighborhood covers the wall of a four-story building and shows a small figure holding a pressure hose beside a real tree. Green paint has been sprayed across the wall, replicating the absent leaves of the tree, which has been severely cropped. Banksy claimed the work by posting before and after photos of the location on his official Instagram account.(AP Photo/Alastair Grant)
“We’ve had a lot of concerns from our residents about disruption from the numbers of visitors to the artwork, which is right outside their homes,” the council said in a statement. It said the fencing would include clear plastic panels "to protect the artwork and allow clear views.”
Banksy, who has never confirmed his full identity, began his career spray-painting buildings in Bristol, England, and has become one of the world’s best-known artists.
His work has sold for millions of dollars at auction, and past murals on outdoor sites have often been stolen or removed by building owners soon after going up. In December, after Banksy stenciled military drones on a stop sign in south London, a man was photographed taking down the sign with bolt cutters. Police later arrested two men on suspicion of theft and criminal damage.
The latest work would be harder to take down since the piece relies on the tree for its impact.
Islington Council said it would monitor the site and "continue to explore future solutions with the building owner so people can enjoy the artwork.”
A new Banksy painting is seen on the wall of a building in London, Monday, March 18, 2024. A new Banksy mural drew crowds to a London street on Monday, even before the elusive graffiti artist confirmed that the work was his. The artwork in the Finsbury Park neighborhood covers the wall of a four-story building and shows a small figure holding a pressure hose beside a real tree. Green paint has been sprayed across the wall, replicating the absent leaves of the tree, which has been severely cropped. Banksy claimed the work by posting before and after photos of the location on his official Instagram account.(AP Photo/Alastair Grant)
People look at a new Banksy painting on a wall in London, Monday, March 18, 2024. A new Banksy mural drew crowds to a London street on Monday, even before the elusive graffiti artist confirmed that the work was his. The artwork in the Finsbury Park neighborhood covers the wall of a four-story building and shows a small figure holding a pressure hose beside a real tree. Green paint has been sprayed across the wall, replicating the absent leaves of the tree, which has been severely cropped. Banksy claimed the work by posting before and after photos of the location on his official Instagram account.(AP Photo/Alastair Grant)
Boarding is put up next to the Banksy artwork on the side of a residential building in Hornsey Road, north London, Wednesday March 27, 2024 which has been covered in perspex sheeting for protection. An environmentally themed mural in London by street artist Banksy has been encased in plastic and surrounded by fencing after an apparent act of vandalism. (Aaron Chown/PA via AP)
Boarding is put up next to the Banksy artwork on the side of a residential building in Hornsey Road, north London, Wednesday March 27, 2024 which has been covered in perspex sheeting for protection. An environmentally themed mural in London by street artist Banksy has been encased in plastic and surrounded by fencing after an apparent act of vandalism. (Aaron Chown/PA via AP)
