Soft Toys are Banksy’s version of hunter’s taxidermy trophies. Mounted onto a wooden plaque, the animal is made to look like a hunting trophy while we gloss over the fact that it is also a victim of the hunter’s desire to kill for sport. Certainly, animals are also the victims of humanity’s centuries long habit of pollution and ecological destruction.

Seeming at first glance to sneer at the so called “snowflake generation,” the work could also be interpreted as promoting an environmental message with the aid of a visual pun. Adding to its sustainable credentials and message is the fact that the plush dolls were “upcycled” – each piece in the series is described as being made from “charity shop kids toys and genuine random beach detritus.” The buyer is also clearly warned that this means they “may contain germs/infectious substances.”

Banksy frequently uses animals in his work to convey messages that seem to turn a mirror towards ourselves as a society, forcing us to reconcile with the consequences of our action or inaction. From his sandwich board wearing monkeys, to his placard rats, animals are used to convey the message from our beloved anonymous artist, as well as the voices of all the underprivileged, oppressed, and ignored in our contemporary societies. He often depicts animals as being threatened and entrapped by humans. For instance, in Barcode, he illustrates a leopard who appears to have just broken free from a cage made of the stripes of a UPC barcode found on every consumer good (or its packaging). However, the artist also shares a message of hope that one can get free from the torments of capitalism and consumerism, as the Leopard has broken free from his cage, or the Monkey Queen who took power.