Who is Banksy?

The identity of satirical street artist Banksy has remained a mystery since he gained popularity. He is one of the most - if not the most - famous contemporary artists.

Everybody knows the name, but nobody knows the person behind the pseudonym. Let’s explore some of the top theories… Read on for more information about Banksy the artist, including speculations on his age, location, and of course, his identity.

Where is Banksy From?

Again, although the exact location of his birth is unconfirmed, it is thought that he is from Yate - a town located in the Southwest of England, near Bristol and the Cotswolds.

His artwork began appearing in Bristol in the early 90’s, including his trademark stencil designs. It is thought that the city’s musical culture (including bands such as Massive Attack and Portishead) influenced and inspired his artwork.

After being located in Bristol for around a decade, he moved to London in the early 2000s.

Where he lives now remains a mystery -Banksy’s artwork appears in locations all around the world, such as:

• Bristol
• London
• Birmingham
• Nottingham
• Southampton
• Port Talbot
• New York City
• Los Angeles
• Ukraine
• Timbuktu
• Bethlehem and the West Bank

How Old is Banksy?

Banksy's exact birth date remains unknown, but it is thought that he was born sometime around 1974.

This would make Banksy around 50 years old now. One of the most prominent theories is that Banksy is Robin Gunningham, who was born on July 28, 1974.

When Did Banksy Start?

• Early 1990’s – Joined DryBreadZ Crew (DBZ)
• 1994 – Began using stencils, inspired by 3D from popular band Massive Attack
• 1998 – First show in Bristol
• 2002 – First major international show – The ‘Existencilism’ exhibition in LA
• 2003 – ‘Turf War’ exhibition in London
• 2008 – Hosted major street art event – ‘The Cans Festival’ in London
• 2010 – Released ‘Exit Through the Gift Shop’ documentary
• 2015 – ‘Dismaland’ opened - a dystopian theme park exhibition in Weston-super-Mare
• 2018 – Girl with Balloon shredded at auction becoming Love is in the Bin
• 2022 – New Bansky artworks appeared in Ukraine commenting on the conflict
• 2024 – Animal series of street art in London, finishing at London Zoo

Top Theories on Banksy’s Identity

So, now we understand a little more about Banksy - his age, location and history, let’s look into some of the top theories on who Banksy could be… Here’s a sneak peek of his identity from a rare video in 2003:

1 - Robin Gunningham

One of the most popular - and most credible - theories is that Banksy is a former pupil of Bristol Cathedral School - Robin Gunningham. But why? Because Robin’s movements seem to coincide with Banksy’s.

A study from 2016 at Queen Mary University of London explored the identity of Banksy using geographic profiling. Interestingly, publishing of the results was delayed when Banksy’s legal team raised concerns. The study applied a Dirichlet process mixture model, analysing the spatial distribution of Banksy's artwork locations in London and Bristol.

The analysis found that the locations of Banksy’s artwork closely matched places associated with Robin Gunningham. Locations linked with Gunngingham – for example, where he lived, where he went to school, and where his wife lived – scored high on the geoprofile. You can download information about this study here.

This wasn’t the first time that Gunningham has been linked with Banksy. The Mail on Sunday claimed to have unmasked the street artists at Robin Gunningham back in 2008. Banksy, of course, denied this revelation. In 2023, The Mail on Sunday suggested that Gunningham hasn’t admitted he is Banksy because it would be harder to sell his artwork being privately educated, and the persona is a big selling point.

To further support the theory that Banksy is Robin Gunningham, in a rare audio clip from 2003, Banksy claims his name is ‘Robbie’, which is close to the name ‘Robin’.

2 - Robert Del Naja from Massive Attack

Another popular theory suggests that Banksy is no other than Robert Del Naja from Massive Attack – known on the street art scene as 3D. The audio clip above also supports this theory, where he says, regarding his name, “It’s Robbie”. But why do people think Banksy is Robert Del Naja from Massive Attack? Let’s explore some of the key links…

1 – Both Have Strong Ties to Bristol - The two notable names share ties to Bristol - Del Naja was a prominent graffiti artist in Bristol before his music career took off. Banksy was also a prominent graffiti artist in Bristol around the same time. Could this be a coincidence?

2 – They Have Similar Styles - Del Naja and Banksy are both recognised for their stencil work. Despite having distinct styles, they do have some overlaps.

3 – Tour Dates Coincide with Banksy Art Appearing - Banksy's artwork has appeared in cities shortly after Massive Attack concerts - for example, in Toronto, New York, Melbourne, Boston, Los Angeles, and New Orleans. Could this be because they’re friends, or because they are the same person?

4 – Banksy and Del Naja Keep Similar Company - The two artists have acknowledged each other publicly, with Del Naja referring to Banksy as ‘Mate’. The two have similar social and artistic socials - and Del Naja even appeared in Banksy’s documentary, Exit Through the Gift Shop. Massive Attack was also supposed to play at “Dismaland”. But of course, they cancelled last minute.

Let’s not forget that DJ Goldie accidentally referred to Banksy as Robert during a 2017 podcast… “Give me a bubble letter and put it on a t-shirt and write ‘Banksy’ on it and we’re sorted,”... “We can sell it now. No disrespect to Robert, I think he is a brilliant artist. I think he has flipped the world of art over.”

Some people believe that Banksy is a collective of artists, with Del Naja at the forefront – but we explore this theory further down the list. Both men have denied being the same person – however, this rumour is a strong one in the art scene.

3 - Neil Buchanan from Art Attack

Neil Buchanan from the children’s art show ‘Art Attack’ is also rumoured to be Banksy. This rumour did its rounds back in 2020 and gained attention on social media. However, of course, Buchanan denied this rumour. But why do people believe that Neil Buchanan and the iconic street artist are the same person - aside, of course, from their love of art?

One key reason is that Banksy’s artwork appeared in cities where Buchanan’s band, Marseille, performed. Both figures have a background in art and music. This is one of the least credible theories - there are fewer connections to back this theory up. Let’s not forget that Buchanan has roots in Lancashire, far from Bristol and Yate.

4 - Jamie Hewlett from Gorillaz

The theory that Jamie Hewlett, co-creator of Gorillaz, is Banksy, surfaced in 2018. A forensic expert looked into Banksy's real identity and claimed to trace the ownership of companies that are linked to Banksy back to Hewlett.

Although we can’t view the evidence ourselves, here are the key findings according to the forensic expert:

1. “Picturesonwalls Ltd," is owned by Hewlett.
2. This company is involved with sales of Banksy’s art.
3. It also owns "Pest Control Office Ltd” – the agency that authenticates Banksy’s Art.
4. It also appears to own “Paranoid Pictures”, the production company that produced Banksy’s documentary “Exit Through the Gift Shop”.

Much like other prominent theories, this was denied by Banksy’s publicist - who stated categorically “Jamie Hewlett is not the artist Banksy”.

5 - Banksy is… A Collective?

Finally, we have the theory that Banksy is not a person, but a group of people. This theory makes sense, as he appears to travel all around the world, with pieces of art popping up in different locations seemingly overnight.

Some of the large-scale projects could not possibly be completed by one person. For example, Dismaland, the Walled Off Hotel, and Better Out Than In would have required some serious planning and resources, which suggests that multiple people were involved.

There are some rumours that well-known artists have collaborated with Banksy - or are part of the collective. Names such as John D’oh, James AME72 Ame, and of course, Massive Attack's Robert Del Naja have been speculated to be a part of the collective. Maintaining secrecy must be tough for a single person - but with a large group, it becomes much easier to throw people off the scent.

We may never know the true identity of Banksy – which begs the question, does it matter? Some things might be best left a mystery.