Banksy MIA

The "battle" against graffiti continues around the world - A large wall mural by "guerrilla artist" Banksy has been mistakenly painted over by a council's graffiti-removal contractors. The valuable 25ft-long artwork, on the side of garages in Bristol, was covered with a coat of thick black paint. Bristol City Council said it wanted an investigation into the blunder. The council has ordered all Banksy works in the city to be preserved. Someone has now sprayed the words "Wot no Banksy?" over the obscured work. Banksy has been accepted as a mainstream artist, and recently sold a piece for more than $200,000 Cdn. Adding insult to injury, the graffiti was on private, not public, property and the owner is 'exploring his options' with the town council.

It was not the first indignity inflicted on his work in 2007 - contractors in London covered up a pice showing a monkey blowing up a bunch of bananas in January. His popularity seems to peak Merseyside though, where several pieces have been liberated/chiselled free in Liverpool.
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