Banksy Installs New Sculpture Overnight in Central London

Street artist Banksy confirmed on April 30, 2026, via Instagram that a new sculpture in central London is his work. The sculpture, installed in the early hours of April 29, 2026, on a plinth in Waterloo Place near Buckingham Palace, depicts a man striding off a plinth with his face covered by a billowing flag.

Banksy posted a humorous video on his Instagram account showing snippets of the installation process in the dead of night.

Locals and tourists gathered to inspect the statue before Banksy's confirmation, assuming it was his work due to his signature scrawled at the base of the plinth. The sculpture shows a besuited man walking forward, blinded by a flag covering his face.

Banksy used a low-loader, traffic cones, and a team to install the statue under cover of darkness in the early hours of April 29, 2026. The video posted to Instagram on April 30, 2026, included glimpses of yellow traffic cones, a large vehicle with lorry-load stabilisers, a person in an orange hi-viz vest, and someone with protective goggles lifting the statue onto the plinth using a hook.

Safety barriers have been put up around the statue.

The statue is situated close to statues of King Edward VII, who reigned between 1901 and 1910, Florence Nightingale, and the Crimean War Memorial. It is located in Waterloo Place in St James's, close to Pall Mall and Carlton House Terrace in Westminster. The statue was placed in front of the gilded statue of Athena on the façade of the Athenaeum Club.

Westminster City Council did not grant permission for the installation as it was not given advance warning, according to a council spokesperson. Banksy's first creations appeared in the early 1990s in his hometown of Bristol in southwest England. Banksy has never publicly revealed his identity.

Banksy's paintings and installations have sold for millions of dollars at auction. com.