New Banksy prison mural defaced with red paint
A new Banksy mural has been defaced - just weeks after the artist confirmed it was his.
The ‘Create Escape’ artwork appeared on the wall of a former prison in Reading on 1 March.
It showed an inmate escaping lockdown using a knotted spool of paper from a typewriter.
But this week, pictures emerged showing the piece had been defaced with red paint and tagged ‘Team Robbo’.
This appears to be a reference to graffiti artist King Robbo, who was engaged in a long-running feud with Banksy before his death in 2014.
The rivalry is said to have started in 2009, when Banksy painted over one of King Robbo’s tags in Camden, London.
'Hugely disappointing'
Cllr Jason Brock, leader of Reading Borough Council, said it was “hugely disappointing”.
"There is understandable anger across the town today.
"The vacant Reading Gaol site, including the perimeter wall which Banksy's artwork is on, is private land owned by the Ministry of Justice.
"When the original artwork appeared, the council made contact with the Ministry of Justice to ask it to make suitable arrangements to protect the image.
"We will now be contacting them again to see what action it intends to take.”
A Ministry of Justice spokesperson confirmed they were aware the mural had been defaced.
Banksy confirmed he was behind Create Escape in a video on his official website and Instagram page on 4 March.
The video showed the elusive artist executing the work in footage set to archive commentary from The Joy Of Painting with Bob Ross.
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