Banksy‘s new identity has finally been revealed – after the shy superstar street artist changed his name when this newspaper unmasked him.
The British graffitist, who is known for his distinctive stencilled spray paintings, has become internationally renowned since his career began in the nineties.
His works, which often comment on the state of British politics, have sold for tens of millions of pounds over the years and seen him dubbed an icon in the art world.
He has always worked under the pseudonym, amid various guesses about who he really is – including Robert Del Naja, a member of the band Massive Attack.
The Mail on Sunday finally revealed in 2008 the artist is in fact a man named Robin Gunningham, who was born in Bristol in 1973.
But in a shocking twist, a recent investigation by Reuters has disclosed Mr Gunningham changed his name after the MoS report to maintain his anonymity.
He is now known as David Jones – a moniker so common in the UK that for nearly 20 years, it has helped him continue to hide in plain sight.
The discovery came after the news agency found new details in a memoir written by Steve Lazarides, a photographer and Mr Gunningham’s former manager.
Banksy, who is known for his distinctive stencilled spray paintings, has become internationally renowned since his career began in the nineties. Pictured: One of his works in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk
The British graffitist (left) has always worked under the pseudonym, amid various guesses about who he really is – including Robert Del Naja (centre), a member of the band Massive Attack
The Mail on Sunday finally revealed in 2008 the artist is in fact a man named Robin Gunningham (pictured), who was born in Bristol in 1973
His book, called Banksy Captured, about his experience working for the artist from the late nineties until 2008, included a telling anecdote from more than 25 years ago.
In September 2000, the pair visited Ivy Brown, a gallerist and Mr Lazarides’ photography agent, at her apartment in Manhattan, New York.
She was dismayed by a billboard advertising Marc Jacobs clothing which had been put up on the roof of her building.
It was a distinctive brownstone property, with a triangular shape like the city’s famous Flat Iron building – and she felt the new structure ruined the block’s appearance.
Ms Brown asked Mr Gunningham to graffiti the billboard to make it look better, which he did, inspired by one he had seen in Steven Spielberg’s iconic 1975 film Jaws.
In the movie, someone defaces a tourism sign of a woman on an inflatable raft at sea.
They give her bulging eyes, add a shark fin and draw a speech bubble saying, ‘HELP!!! SHARK.’
Similarly, Mr Gunningham gave the model on the Marc Jacobs billboard rabbit-like teeth and drew an empty speech bubble.
But it was only empty because the police caught and arrested him before he could finish – though Mr Lazarides’s book did not say exactly where or when this was.
The exact building has now been identified and the advert dated – and this was used to unearth previously unseen police and court documents.
The paperwork shows at 4.20am on September 18, 2000, officers found a man defacing a billboard on 675 Hudson Street.
Because the damages were greater than $1,500, the force sought to charge him with a felony – and obtained a handwritten signed confession from the man.
He was released within hours of his arrest after agreeing to temporarily hand over his passport, and later posted $1,500 bail to get it back.
The felony charges were reduced to a disorderly conduct misdemeanour. He was ordered to complete five days of community service and pay $310 in a fine and fees.
The graffiti did not unmask him as Banksy at the time because he had then only just begun using the pseudonym and its associated style.
But the minor incident has now cost him his anonymity – with his signature and mentions in the newly discovered documents confirming him as Robin Gunningham.
But in a shocking twist, a recent investigation by Reuters has disclosed Mr Gunningham changed his name after the MoS report to maintain his anonymity. Pictured: Banksy’s artwork Love is in the Bin
He is now known as David Jones – a moniker so common in the UK that for nearly 20 years, it has helped him continue to hide in plain sight. Pictured: Graffiti attributed to the artist at Glastonbury Festival in 2022
The discovery came after the news agency found new details in a memoir written by Steve Lazarides, a photographer and Mr Gunningham’s former manager. Pictured: Artwork by Banksy in Walthamstow, London
An MoS investigation published in July 2008 unmasked the artist’s name and picture for the first time.
But despite his name being public knowledge for years following the report, the artist’s fans continued to ignore it.
Instead of calling him by his real name, there was a surreal omerta, which saw his true identity continue to be camouflaged by his supporters.
This, according to art experts previously speaking to the MoS, let him continue to exploit his image as ‘the Scarlet Pimpernel of modern art’ – and keep earning.
And after this newspaper’s story was published, mentions of Mr Gunningham in British public records are few and far between.
It seemed as if the report had prompted him to go off-grid.
During his time in New York, he stayed for several months in the Carlton Arms Hotel in Manhattan, which lets artists stay for free in return for decorating their rooms.
Robert Clarke, a former hotel employee, struck up a friendship with Mr Gunningham during his time there, bonding over their shared hometown of Bristol.
He wrote a memoir, called Seven Years With Banksy, about their relationship, which mentioned the artist had once considered legally changing his name.
This hypothesis for Mr Gunningham’s disappearance from records seemed to be confirmed by Mr Lazarides, who told Reuters the name was a ‘dead end’.
‘There is no Robin Gunningham,’ he said. ‘The name you’ve got I killed years ago… You’ll never find him.’
His former manager said the anonymity began as a way to avoid police seeking to arrest the artist for his graffiti work – but later became difficult to maintain.
The pair parted ways in 2008 – the same year as the MoS investigation – in what Mr Lazarides said was a mutual decision.
But the last thing he did for his client was to arrange for his name to be legally changed, to one that could never be linked to him.
Mr Lazarides refused to reveal Mr Gunningham’s new identity – though he did note it was a random one, with no hidden meaning, pun or joke in it.
The artist’s past public statements, companies connected to him and extracts from books and articles about him were used to eventually piece it together.
His book, called Banksy Captured, about his experience working for the artist from the late nineties until 2008, included a telling anecdote from more than 25 years ago. Pictured: The Flower Thrower, Flower Bomber, Rage, or Love is in the Air, a piece of artwork by the artist at a Banksy exhibition
In revealing the artist’s new name, it was considered he did not face an extensive risk of retaliation or censorship – even after he painted (pictured) on the historically protected Royal Courts of Justice building in London in September last year
There has long been speculation that musician Robert Del Naja (pictured during a DJ set in 2019), a known graffiti artist and Massive Attack band member, could be Banksy. It has now been confirmed he is not the artist
They were cross-referenced with public, property and passport records, as well as a corporate filing by the artist’s former accountant.
His new name can now be disclosed to be David Jones – one so common in the UK it has afforded him continued anonymity for the nearly 20 years after the MoS report.
It is also the birth name of David Bowie. Features of the musician’s Ziggy Stardust alter ego were once used by Mr Gunningham to paint a portrait of the late Queen.
Whether the artist uses this new name to this day is unclear – but when asked about the latest findings, Banksy did not reply.
His company, Pest Control Office, which authenticates his work and decides who gets the first chance to buy it, said the artist ‘has decided to say nothing’.
Banksy’s long-time lawyer, Mark Stephens, meanwhile, said the artist ‘does not accept that many of the details contained within your enquiry are correct’.
He neither expanded on this, nor confirmed or denied the artist’s identity.
But he urged Reuters not to publish its report, saying it would violate the artist’s privacy, put him danger and stop him from being able to create art freely.
Mr Stephens said Banksy has for years ‘been subject to fixated, threatening and extremist behaviour’. He did not specify what these threats were.
He also said uncovering the artist would harm the public as working ‘anonymously or under a pseudonym serves vital societal interests’.
‘It protects freedom of expression by allowing creators to speak truth to power without fear of retaliation, censorship or persecution – particularly when addressing sensitive issues such as politics, religion or social justice,’ he said.
These privacy claims and the wish of many Banksy fans that his anonymity is maintained were taken into account.
But it was concluded there is a public interest in understanding such a prominent cultural, artistic and political figure’s identity and career.
And anonymity has long enabled him to operate without the necessary transparency, scrutiny and accountability of those who seek to shape social and political discourse.
It was also considered he did not face an extensive risk of retaliation or censorship – even after he painted on the historically protected Royal Courts of Justice building in London in September last year.
The day after the artwork appeared, the Metropolitan Police said it was investigating ‘a report of criminal damage’ to the building.
The Ministry of Justice, meanwhile, said an investigation is ongoing. It declined to say if the artist was penalised or paid compensation. His lawyer did not comment.
As of December, the government has spent £23,690 on ongoing work to remove the piece – a trace of which still remains on the wall.
There has long been speculation that musician Robert Del Naja, a known graffiti artist and Massive Attack band member, could be Banksy.
It has now been confirmed he is not the artist, who has previously said he admires Del Naja’s painting, which he does under the alias 3D.
But the pair are friends – and the musician has on at least one occasion acted as Banksy’s painting partner.
This included in October 2022, when they were found to have travelled to Ukraine, with documentary photographer Giles Duley to paint a mural on a bombed-out apartment block.