The elusive artist Banksy has been on a surge of animal-inspired drawings over the past week in London – with his latest work a group of piranhas on a police watch.
The new street graffiti of the killer fish was first spotted on Sunday morning and is among seven new Banksy pieces dotted around the city in as many days.
The fresh series of artwork from the street artist also includes a goat, a pair of elephants, three monkeys, a wolf howling under the moon, two pelicans and a stretched-out cat, according to recent Instagram posts where he takes credit for the art.
The group of piranhas that appear to be swimming in an aquarium at the London Police glass booth is located on Ludgate Hill near The Old Bailey and St. Paul’s Cathedral, according to the BBC.
Crowds reportedly came quickly to take pictures of the new art inside the booth before authorities installed barriers.
Artist Daniel Lloyd-Morgan called the week-long art “uplifting”.
“It’s not just about the artwork, it’s about the whole environment he creates, it becomes a kind of artwork in itself – what happens to it, people steal it or take it away,” he told the BBC.
Some of the new pieces have not been untouched for a long time.
The wolf on a satellite dish was removed by alleged thieves and the cat on an empty sign was taken down by contractors with plans to donate it to an art gallery, according to the Guardian.
A spokesperson for the City of London Corporation said in a statement to the store that they were working to ensure that the piranhas on the police box would be preserved.