Although the artist retains full anonymity, Bansky is believed to have been born in Bristol in 1974. Taking inspiration from the Bristol Underground Scene, the artist claims that his distinctive style, which combines stencil and graffiti writing, developed out of a need to quickly create large-scale works.

Banksy's work typically includes satirical social and political commentary, and ranges from murals to sculpture and installation, often playing with the contextual aspects of the work. The artist's first solo show was held in 2002 at Los Angeles' 33 1/3 Gallery, and in 2003 he was commissioned to design to cover of Blur's ThinkTank. Today, Banksy's work appears internationally; most notably, he painted nine sardonic images on the Palestinian side of the West Bank barrier.

Most recently in Summer 2009, Banksy took over the Bristol Museum and Art Gallery with an exhibition attracting over 300,000 visitors, attracting hour-long queues all the way down the road.