Did British street artist Banksy give a Valentine's gift to his hometown of Bristol in the west of England? The appearance this week of a new mural fresco showing a little girl armed with a slingshot and an explosion of red flowers intrigues the press across the Channel.
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Banksy - whose identity is not known to the public - has not confirmed that the work was his. He often uses Instagram to claim ownership of his works but did not do so this time. Or not yet. His agent also did not respond to Reuters' confirmation request.
The drawing shows a girl wearing a scarf, stenciled in black and white on the side of a house in the Barton Hill district of Bristol. She holds a slingshot in one hand, as if she had just launched a projectile. Above it, a bright red explosion, similar to blood spatter, is made up of plastic leaves and flowers that "drip" onto the traffic sign below. Did the little girl just shoot a cherub or a love dove? Mystery.
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The fresco was spotted Thursday morning, the eve of Valentine's Day which is very celebrated in Anglo-Saxon countries.
Today in Barton Hill, we woke up with this remarkable mural art painted on one of the houses of the area.
We hope it's Banksy's work.
Come and have a look yourself. Whoever painted, it's worth admiring their creativity.
Thank you @ TristanCorkPost @bbcrb pic.twitter.com/ppEiKAaOrH
