New Statue in London, Attributed to Banksy, of a Suited Man, Blinded by a Flag

May 3, 2026 · science · Source ↗

TLDR

Banksy apparently installed a fiberglass statue overnight in Waterloo Place, London: a suited man blinded by a flag, walking off a tall pedestal.

Installed covertly on a Wednesday night; Banksy’s Instagram posted installation footage Thursday, intercutting London landmarks as implicit confirmation.
Statue is likely fiberglass, matched in height and finish to surrounding 19th-century monuments including Florence Nightingale and King Edward VII.
London authorities placed safety barriers but confirmed no plans to remove it; Mayor Khan’s office expressed hope it would be preserved.
The work arrived less than two months after a Reuters investigation attempted to unmask Banksy’s identity, which he declined to confirm or deny.
Statues are rare for Banksy; prior sculpture work includes The Drinker (2004), a Rodin parody installed in London.

Commenters split on whether the piece is too on-the-nose: the unadorned, generic flag was read by some as a deliberate Rorschach that leaves ideological projection open to the viewer.
Several noted the institutional contradiction: Banksy’s protected anonymity and official non-removal signal establishment tolerance, undermining the transgressive framing.
A practical thread examined production: the plinth itself is likely fiberglass too, and commenters pointed to the documentary “The Banksy Job” as background on how such works are fabricated and placed.

@CapitalistCartr: Notes that high-viz gear and a toolbelt render a person functionally invisible on job sites, implying overnight installation logistics are easier than assumed.
@seydor: “Anyone else leaving up a huge statue in the middle of the park would be arrested” – highlights the selective enforcement angle commenters returned to repeatedly.