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Napalm

Print
ca. 2004 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Banksy is perhaps the best-known street artist in Britain. His stencil graffiti adorns urban walls from London to Barcelona, and is often underlined by humour and politics. Much of his work pokes fun at royalty or religion, but perhaps his most memorable recent work has had an anti-war message. This image is based on an iconic photograph taken in Vietnam in 1972, of a girl fleeing from a napalm attack on her village. She is flanked by twin icons of American mass popular culture, Mickey Mouse and Ronald McDonald. Although the print refers to a specifically to the Vietnam war, recent world events bring a contemporary poignancy to the image.

Object details

Category
Object type
TitleNapalm (assigned by artist)
Materials and techniques
Screenprint on paper
Brief description
'Napalm', screenprint by Banksy, ca. 2004.
Physical description
A print in grey, white and black showing a crying naked girl with Mickey Mouse on one side and Ronald McDonald on the other.
Dimensions
  • Height: 50cm
  • Width: 70cm
Marks and inscriptions
PICTURES ON WALLS DOT COM 101/500 (Bottom left, stamped embossed circle, 101/500 in pencil within circle)
Object history
Displayed in the Link Corridor in Aug-Oct 2005 in the 'Street Art' display.
Subjects depicted
Summary
Banksy is perhaps the best-known street artist in Britain. His stencil graffiti adorns urban walls from London to Barcelona, and is often underlined by humour and politics. Much of his work pokes fun at royalty or religion, but perhaps his most memorable recent work has had an anti-war message. This image is based on an iconic photograph taken in Vietnam in 1972, of a girl fleeing from a napalm attack on her village. She is flanked by twin icons of American mass popular culture, Mickey Mouse and Ronald McDonald. Although the print refers to a specifically to the Vietnam war, recent world events bring a contemporary poignancy to the image.
Collection
Accession number
E.386-2005

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Record createdSeptember 8, 2005
Record URL
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