A parody of Vermeer’s Girl With A Pearl Earring, Banksy’s portrait now wears a blue surgical mask alongside her ‘stretcher’, or outdoor security alarm, earring. The mural first appeared in 2014, and just so happens to be based in Banksy’s rumoured hometown of Bristol.
However, with Banksy clearly indoors, art lovers are curious as to who added her extra accessory. A Banksy admirer? Maybe there’s more than one of him? Or perhaps he just got bored during his allotted outdoor exercise time?
This wouldn’t be the first time that another artist has made their own addition to a Banksy piece. On Valentine’s Day this year, the artist revealed a new work, depicting a little girl firing a slingshot of exploding red flower in Bristol. The mural was sadly vandalised less than 48 hours later, with the perpetrators scrawling “BCC WANKERS” across the wall in question. It is theorised that this was targeted at the Bristol City Council.
