Never-before-seen photos of Banksy show him painting mural before he was famous
The photos show him working on a piece in 2000.
These photos show a man rumoured to be elusive street artist Banksy spray painting one of his most biggest works of art.
The images picture the man working on a Banksy piece in Malaga, Spain, called The Turbozone Truck in 2000, which eventually went for auction for £1million to £1.5million but failed to sell.
Banksy painted the side of a 17-tonne circus lorry after a party before he became more secretive as an artist.
The photographer – who wishes to remain anonymous – took the recently released photos at 6am on New Year’s Day 2000.
The photographer said: ‘I used to spend a lot of time in Bristol.
‘Our friends told us about this party that was going on in Spain and we thought why not?
‘At the time we were very aware of Banksy’s stuff when it was popping up, but he was still quite under the radar.
‘Then we were at the party and saw this guy painting – the three of us just turned to each other and said it’s got to be Banksy.
‘Little did we know at the time he would go on to become one of the most famous artists in the world.’
The photographer said when he approached the man and asked if he was Banksy, he confirmed he was.
They added: ‘It wasn’t much of a conversation – I remember we said how we’d seen some of his work in Bristol, as far as I remember, he had been flown over from Bristol.’
The artwork is thought to be the largest-ever piece created by Banksy.
Before and after it failed to sell at auction in 2019, the truck has been travelling around Europe and South America as part of Turbozone’s Cinderella show.
It also features in Banksy’s Wall and Piece book, which was published in 2006.
Other pictures rumoured to be Banksy from the 1980s on a ski trip were also released recently.
Two photos show him tumbling backwards mid-air as he catches a jump, while another shows him reclining on the slopes with four classmates.
A third photo shows him and 11 other boys in front of the Berlin Wall, on the West German side of the imposing barrier which stopped people from fleeing communist East Germany.
This article was first published on May 21, 2024.
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