The mysterious street artist Banksy is suspected of making a second public appearance in as many days, this time with a festive new piece in East London. The artwork, which surfaced overnight, features a stencilled reindeer with its antlers ensnared in a string of multicoloured Christmas lights.
Festive Art in a Forgotten Corner
The new creation was discovered on a wall of disused tennis court changing rooms in London Fields, Hackney. The reindeer is depicted on a blue wall, with the fairy lights hanging from a metal bar, creating a poignant and unexpected splash of seasonal colour in an abandoned urban space. While the artist has not yet officially claimed the work, its stencil style and thematic delivery are strongly reminiscent of Banksy's signature approach.
A Pointed Message on Child Homelessness
This festive piece emerged just 24 hours after Banksy confirmed two other new artworks in the capital. Those works, located in Bayswater and near the Centre Point building, show identical images of two children lying on the pavement in winter clothing, with one pointing upwards. Art experts suggest the Bayswater location was deliberately chosen to comment on the issue of child homelessness in the city. The artist announced these pieces by posting an image to his official Instagram account on Monday afternoon.
A History of Seasonal Commentary
Banksy has a long-established tradition of releasing work around the Christmas period. For the past eight years, he has regularly unveiled pieces in the run-up to the holidays that carry sharp social messages. His 'Santa’s Ghetto' project ran intermittently from 2002 to 2007 as a temporary, Christmas-only exhibition in various London locations, later moving to Bethlehem. Previous festive works have included a depiction of Jesus Christ carrying shopping bags and an image of a boy catching ashes from a burning bin, mistaken for snowflakes.
This latest activity follows a politically charged mural that appeared on the Royal Courts of Justice in September, showing a protester being struck by a judge's gavel. That piece was swiftly covered by officials after nearly 900 arrests at a related demonstration. Last August, Banksy also created a series of nine animal-themed murals across London, culminating in a gorilla opening the shutters of London Zoo.
The appearance of the new reindeer artwork continues the artist's pattern of using the festive season to provoke thought and draw attention to social issues, embedding his iconic imagery into the fabric of London's streets.
