Banksy says he is ‘glad’ his latest work has been vandalised

Art depicting a little girl firing a slingshot appeared on a Bristol wall on 13 February

Banksy has said that he is “glad” his latest artwork has been vandalised, suggesting that his original sketches for the design were better.

The new work by the enigmatic artist appeared on the side of a building in the Barton Hill area of Bristol earlier this month (13 February).

It depicts a young girl firing a slingshot into the sky, creating a red firework-style explosion.

The mural only lasted 48 hours, however, before it was defaced with graffiti reading “BCC W***ERS”. The message is believed to refer to Bristol City Council.

On Instagram, Banksy addressed the vandalisation.

“I’m kind of glad the piece in Barton Hill got vandalised,” the artist wrote. “The initial sketch was a lot better…”

Alongside the caption are a number of sketches depicting earlier incarnations of the art.

Last November, a Banksy artwork that was obscured by scaffolding in Notting Hill since 2008 was uncovered.

Just one month later, the artist created a modified Nativity scene at a hotel in Bethlehem.