Angel Flack Jacket, 2009
Spray paint on wood
244 x 82.8 cm (96 x 32 5/8 inches)
Signed and marked with the artist’s symbol on the reverse
Exhibited
Bristol, Bristol City Museum, Banksy vs Bristol Museum, June – August 2009
Auction History
Sotheby’s London: 15 October 2022
GBP 504,000
Angel Flack Jacket | Contemporary Day Auction | 2022 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)
Banksy’s Angel Flack Jacket (2009) is based on an earlier graffiti by the artist depicting a winged angel figure in a bulletproof vest, which was executed on a wall in Shoreditch in London. The original graffiti was made as a tribute to another English artist, Ozone, who died in 2007 after being hit by an underground train in East London while running away from the police. Banksy published the following message on his website following the creation of the graffiti:
“The last time I hit this spot I painted a crap picture of two men in banana costumes waving hand guns (Pulp Fiction spoof). A few weeks later a writer called Ozone completely dogged it and then wrote ‘If it’s better next time i’ll leave it’ in the bottom corner. When we lost Ozone we lost a fearless graffiti writer and as it turns out a pretty perceptive art critic. Ozone – rest in peace”
BANKSY, OLD STREET, LONDON, 2007
IMAGE: © JENNY MATTHEWS / ALAMY STOCK PHOTO
The original graffiti shows the angel holding a skull, symbolizing the tragic and sudden death of Ozone. The present composition is an altered version of the same cherub-like figure which however no longer has wings. Angel Flack Jacket exemplifies Banksy’s role as a social commentator and satirist and his signature use of familiar symbols juxtaposed with incompatible references to create absurd and provocative images which convey potent political messages. In this case, he depicts an innocent and delicate figure wearing a bullet proof jacket, itself embodying violence and war. In Banksy’s works, satire does not need to single-handedly dismantle an ideology for its employment to be deemed a success. Rather, the identification of previously hidden or disguised oppressive concepts by audiences is a success in the expansion of social consciousness. Indeed, drawing into the realm of visibility those on the margins of society that are considered helpless and invisible, largely without legal, juridical and visual representation, Banksy successfully infiltrates the social consciousness and continues to be heralded as one of the most celebrated artists of our generation.
