Lithograph, Fabriano Cotton Privilege heavyweight velin paper, 70 x 50 cm (sheet), limited edition, numbered in pencil 63/150, hand-signed in pencil below composition, publisher's dry stamps: p.d." P.O.W. PRINTMAKING", l.d. graphic mark, hologram "verification of authenticity" on the back.
Original certificate issued by Aviomar Italia SPA (drystamp) and Gafiart UK,( stamp), confirming ownership of the matrices for the limited edition of 150 by agreement from 1971 , confirms the signature of the author and dry stamps.
Banksy is a British street artist who has gained international fame for his provocative and often politicallyengagedworks.His works,mostlydonein stencil techniques,can befound on the streets of citiesaround the world. Banksy is known forremaining anonymous, and hisidentity is still the subject of speculationtoday. His art often includes humorous graphics and symbols that are combined with slogans. The overall message of his works is anti-war, anti-capitalist and pacifist.Among his best-known worksare "Girl with a Balloon," "Bomb Hugger," "Police Kids," "Pulp Fiction" and "Flower Thrower" or "Rat Love."
Banksy, a well-known British street artist,hasrepeatedlyused the image of a rat in hisartwork.Hiswork "Rat Love" is one example in which the rat not only plays an aesthetic role, butalso carriesdeepsymbolism,typical of Banksy's work.
The rat, which appears in many of Banksy's works, symbolizes opposition to authority, rebellion and struggle against the system. Banksy chooses this animal for a reason - rats are often seen as unwanted, dirty, and cast outside the margins ofsociety. Despite this,they are extremely resilient and determined,able tosurvive in the most difficult conditions, whichcan becompared to resistance to repression andinjustice.
In "Rat Love," Banksy juxtaposes the image of a rat with a symbol oflove - the heart. This contrast is typical ofthe artist' s ironic andprovocativestyle. Itcanbe read as a commentary on howlovecanexist even where thereseems tobe chaos, filth and destruction. Banksy through his works often criticizes social conventions, the hypocrisy of power and consumerism. "Rat Love"canbe seen as a rejection of these traditionalvaluesassociated withromanticlovepackaged inbeautiful, commercial forms. Banksy shows thatlove is more raw and rebellious, a feelingthatcanthrive in the ugliness of the world.
