Banksy’s identity revealed: his name is Robin Gunningham and he lives under the name David Jones

The mystery that has fueled the myth of contemporary urban art for decades seems to have reached a definitive conclusion. A massive investigation conducted by the international news agency Reuters has discovered that behind the pseudonym Banksy lies Robin Gunningham, a graffiti artist born in Bristol in 1973 and who later took the name David Jones. The discovery is the result of meticulous investigative journalism work that combined field testimonies, video analysis and a careful examination of the movements of the elusive English street artist. The center of the investigation focused on the works that appeared in Ukraine at the end of 2022, whose authorship had been confirmed by Banksy himself via his Instagram profile, as an act of solidarity towards the victims of Russian military intervention. Reuters reporters visited the places where the graffiti had appeared, in particular the town of Horenka, and gathered information from the inhabitants, showing them photographs of various street artists, including the French Thierry Guetta, in order to identify the real Banksy. All evidence pointed towards Gunningham, identified by the Daily Mail tabloid as early as 2008. The newspaper claimed at the time that its year-long investigation had “come as close as possible to revealing” Banksy’s identity, while maintaining a certain caution. Photos of Gunningham had also emerged but the artist’s manager was quick to deny the scoop, fueling the aura of secrecy around the star. Banksy subsequently took the name David Jones but it is unclear whether he still uses it, even more so in light of the discovery made by Reuters which was picked up by media around the world. It was also revealed that Robert Del Naja, frontman of the trip-hop band Massive Attack and a long-time Banksy candidate, was a close collaborator of the street artist. The two then created some four-handed works. Other media had previously come close to identifying him. Last year the BBC published photos of the young Banksy portrayed at work while teaching some kids how to make graffiti and stencils in his Bristol during the 1990s. The person who gave the shots to the British public broadcaster was Peter de Boer, one of the managers of the youth center where Banksy, not yet famous at the time, had been called for some workshops with teenagers, for a fee of 50 pounds for each lesson, and then one day created works valued at millions of pounds.