The Lens: New Banksy mural ‘Valentine’s Day Mascara’ revealed in small English town

Reuters and Yanni Chow

Famous British street artist Banksy confirmed a new mural showing a 1950s housewife with a swollen eye apparently pushing a man into an abandoned chest freezer was his work early on Valentine’s Day, just hours before the appliance was removed.

The artwork, which Banksy titled “Valentine’s Day Mascara” on his website, appeared in the seaside town of Margate, east England, at night on February 12. Its subject and timing appear to highlight violence against women.

Banksy offers few clues about his work, which usually appear in public locations overnight, beyond a confirmation on social media.

Artist Pete Brown was painting the scene when the freezer – which formed an integral part of the mural – was removed last Tuesday morning. “A council truck turned up and they took away the freezer,” he said.

Thanet District Council said the graffiti was on a wall of a privately owned property, but the freezer, which was believed to have been part of the installation, had been removed by council operatives on the grounds of safety, as it was on public land.

“The fridge freezer is now in storage and will be returned once it has been made safe to the public,” the council said. “We will be contacting the owner of the property to discuss the options to preserve the artwork for the district.”

Banksy, a graffiti artist and political activist whose real name has never been confirmed, hails from the city of Bristol in southwest England. Lately, he has been busy producing and selling dozens of limited-edition screen prints to raise funds to support civilians affected by the war in Ukraine.

The 50 prints, which show a mouse sliding down the side of a box with “FRAGILE” printed on it, were sold in December for HK$46,924 each through a charity called Legacy of War Foundation.

• To what extent do you agree with Banksy’s approach to doing graffiti in such a mysterious way?

• What are your views on using art as a medium to spread messages?

Nayab Qureshi, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology

The earthquake that hit Turkey and Syria was a catastrophic event, devastating the two countries and killing tens of thousands of people. The scale of the damage is enormous: some have estimated it could cost Turkey US$84 billion to rebuild after the quake.

Many lives could have been saved if the buildings were better built, so now people are scrutinising the construction industry.

Authorities have targeted contractors allegedly linked to some of the buildings that collapsed. Still, critics are saying the government is trying to shift the blame for a horrific disaster that has exposed its own corruption and negligence.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was previously seen hailing housing projects that later collapsed in the quake and killed thousands of people. Contractors were allowed to skip safety codes that had been put on the books for constructing quake-resistant buildings. This surely increased their profits and allowed them to build more quickly, but was it worth putting residents’ lives at risk?

Syrians were also victims in this quake but have basically been forgotten. The war-torn country is facing issues receiving aid due to the many sanctions against it. Northern Syria was greatly affected by the quake, but the US and European Union are hesitant to send rescue workers to the rebel-held area. Lives are at stake, and countries must figure out how to provide resources to save them.

The Lens: Turkey and Syria hit with devastating earthquake and tremors, killing thousands