On February 28th a mural on the side of Reading prison appeared, which was confirmed as Banksy’s work. “Create Escape” depicts a prisoner fleeing the prison on a long thread of paper from a typewriter; however, the typewriter has been vandalised, reportedly by “Team Robbo”, after the late artist King Robbo.
Banksy being the innovative and clever man that he is confirmed that the art in Reading was his via an Instagram video. The 2-minute video gives fans an insight into how the graffiti was created through satirising Bob Ross’ “The Joy of Painting”.
The graffiti artists war has been on-going since Banksy defaced King Robbo’s art in Regents Canal, London, back in 2009. Their feud was the subject of the documentary Graffiti Wars, which aired on Channel 4 in August 2011, and it appears to still not be over.
“Create Escape” is said to be a reference to the author Oscar Wilde, who served two years hard labour for being homosexual at Reading prison in 1895. The prison has been closed since 2013, however the future of the building is still in discussion. Local campaigners want the site to be transformed into an arts hub, and perhaps this is Banksy’s alignment with this plan.
