London | Street artist Banksy offers another surprise exhibition

(London) Staff arriving at London Zoo early Tuesday were surprised to find an unexpected display suggesting the animals were being released.

A mural by the elusive street artist Banksy showed a gorilla holding the front door as birds took flight and a sea lion waddled away. Three pairs of eyes peered into the darkness inside.

The painting could explain why Banksy’s creatures – from a mountain goat perched on a building pillar to piranhas circling a police station to a rhinoceros climbing on a car – have appeared in the most unlikely places in London for nine days running.

Every piece of art posted on Banksy’s Instagram page included a hashtag from London Zoo, said Dan Simmonds, the zoo’s head of animal operations. But he never imagined the artist would decorate the zoo’s front door.

“Part of the Banksy enigma is obviously that everything is a surprise,” Simmonds said. “We certainly didn’t expect it to happen here, on one of our huge front shutters. But when we came in and saw it, we kind of realised, yeah, we’re so lucky.”

Mr Simmonds said he discovered the mural around 6.30am when he arrived to start feeding the hungry animals. Cyclists riding through Regent’s Park, where the zoo is located, were already posing for selfies.

The roller shutter was kept closed all day to show off the work. It’s busy season for the zoo, but the famous street artist is quickly attracting his own following, and crowds are turning out to see his work and take pictures.

Banksy began his career spray painting buildings in Bristol, England, and has since become one of the world’s most famous artists.

His paintings and installations sell for millions of dollars at auction, and have attracted thieves and vandals. The latest group of works is no exception, and zoo workers protected the one on display later in the day with clear plastic covers.

The rhino that appeared on Monday was tagged with graffiti. A wolf silhouette on a rooftop satellite dish, appearing to howl at the moon, was stolen hours after news of the artwork spread last week.

A large cat, lying on the back of a dilapidated billboard, was removed within hours by three men who said they were hired to take it down for safety reasons.

The aquarium-like police box has been moved from near the Old Bailey to the City of London offices for protection, a spokesman said. It will eventually be placed where it can be seen by the public.

It is unclear whether the zoo mural will be the last in the series.

Mr Simmonds said the zoo was honoured that Banksy had chosen it for one of his exhibitions. He was particularly excited to see the great ape because he had once been the gorilla’s keeper.

He speculated that the primate in the mural was an endangered western lowland gorilla, the subspecies they have at the zoo. Mr. Simmonds identified one of the birds as possibly a macaw and another animal as a bat.

“As for the eyes, who knows, maybe cats looking out,” he said. “That’s the beauty of it. Only Banksy will know.”