WHO IS BANKSY?

 Who is the graffiti artist that no one knows?

Answer:  Banksy, the England-based street artist and political activist, is notoriously private.  Only a small circle knows his real identity.  He started working with spray paint on trains before moving to public places.  One of his most recognized murals, Girl With Balloon (2002) shows a little girl losing her red heart-shaped balloon.  It first appeared in London and has since been found in various other locations.  Girl With Balloon is a stencil of a young girl in black and white, with a bright red, heart-shaped balloon dangling from a string.  It is globally recognized and presents various interpretations.......

Girl With Balloon, UK, 2002

• The little girl may be losing the balloon, which might symbolize the loss of innocence.
• The girl may be about to catch the balloon, which could symbolize the arrival of new hope and love.
• The girl's attempt to grasp the balloon could represent the pursuit of  love, happiness or sense of purpose. 
• The red balloon might be a symbol of childhood dreams.
• Heart balloons are powerful symbols that communicate romantic love, friendship and celebration.  Their combination of the heart-shape and buoyancy of the balloons transcends language.

Banksy is known for using the symbol of the rat as a way of aligning himself with the underdogs that he speaks about, or on behalf of, in his works.  Rats are one of Banksy's greatest sources of inspiration.  An anagram of ART, the rat is a metaphorical tool he uses to reveal the vices and flaws of the human race, and to make a stand for those suffering, toiling in the dark, while being treated as 'lesser than.'

Banksy includes objects that already exist to turn his work into striking street art, like the rat sawing the circle outline on the sidewalk. 

Street art, or graffiti, screams of the human need to be noticed, to be heard, to be understood.