Unique work from a varied series.
Spray paint and emulsion on cut-out canvas, in white artist's frame.
Hand-signed by Banksy in black pen on the backing board, additionaly inscribed with a 'CND' ('Peace') symbol.

In 'Rat & Heart', Banksy deploys his iconic rat motif, this time pairing it with a visceral symbol of love - quite literally carved into the fabric of the work. Rendered in stark monochrome using spray paint and stencil, the rat is shown nuzzling or gnawing at the edge of a red heart, which has been excised from the canvas using a scalpel by the artist himself, exposing it’s deep crimson-lined interior. The rawness of the cutout contrasts dramatically with the clinical precision of the rat’s form, adding a physical dimension to Banksy’s commentary on affection, destruction, and urban survival - standing as both a symbol of rebellion and an embodiment of the overlooked and marginalized.

The work is encased in a white artist’s frame - integral to the piece - suggesting both containment and presentation, a subtle nod to the art world’s commodification of street culture. The use of negative space, in the form of the missing heart, evokes a sense of absence and longing, while also serving as a visual pun on love lost or devoured.

‘Rat & Heart’ exemplifies Banksy’s mastery of subversive wit and symbolic brevity. A powerful fusion of image and absence, the work is a quintessential example of the artist’s ongoing dialogue with themes of vulnerability, resistance, and the mechanics of contemporary affection.

[The canvas (25 x 30.2 cm) in white artist's frame (32 x 37 cm), housed and framed to museum standard within a wooden frame with museum glass, overall dimensions measuring 52.5 x 57.5 x 8 cm].