County of Kent
“The fact that it was a Banksy makes me sick”: Demolition company destroys work by street artist
Unknown Banksy work: boy pushes corrugated iron curtains aside
© Screenshot: Banksy / Instagram
In the UK, street artist Banksy left his mark on the facade of a farmhouse. The problem: The building was demolished – and the workers overlooked the work of art.
A previously unknown Banksy work appears to have been destroyed before it was recognized as such. The mysterious British street artist posted several pictures on his Instagram account on Wednesday, showing one of his works on the facade of a derelict house. You can see the outline of a boy who appears to be standing at a window and pushing aside a curtain made of corrugated iron. It is titled “Morning Has Broken”.
The silhouette of a cat can be seen next to him. But one of the pictures also shows that the facade is no longer there. Next to the rubble are an excavator, a container and a man wearing a safety vest and hardhat.
The previously unknown Banksy work on the wall of a farmhouse
© Screenshot: Banksy / Instagram
By morning, the demolition contractor had destroyed the artwork
© Screenshot: Banksy/Instagram
According to the British news agency PA, the building is an old farmhouse in the town of Herne Bay in the English county of Kent. Local news site KentOnline, citing a demolition company, reported that work on the 16th-century building only began on Tuesday. As a result, neither the workers nor the owner had any idea that it was a Banksy work. “Realizing it was a Banksy makes me sick,” the site quoted one of the men as saying.