Banksy in Margate: The chest freezer is back, the artwork complete and safe

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Banksy artwork complete with freezer and safety glass: local management is in contact with the owner

Photo: Dan Kitwood/Getty Images

A day after it was removed from a Banksy factory in south-east England, a freezer is back in place.

The container is discarded rubbish around which the mysterious street artist sprayed his motif.

"For health and safety reasons, work had to be carried out on the freezer," said the responsible Thanet local council on Wednesday.

The container is now safe and has therefore been returned.

The council now wants to examine with the owner of the property how the plant can be secured.

The work sprayed on a house wall in Margate, Kent, became known on Tuesday.

A few hours later, the municipal council had the chest picked up.

"Banksy raises the important issue of domestic violence in this artwork," the council said.

The motif shows a woman in the style of the 1950s with an apron and yellow gloves.

She has a black eye and is missing a tooth - and apparently she just pushed her partner into a freezer.

Two legs painted on the wall seem to protrude from the real chest.

The mystery artist posted three photos of the work on Instagram on Tuesday, a way he usually announces his authorship.

Two close-ups focus on the battered but smiling woman's face.

Banksy called the work »Valentine's Day Mascara«.

Banksy, who comes from Bristol in western England, repeatedly addresses social grievances in his works.

Most recently, he caused a stir with a series of pictures of war-damaged houses in Ukraine.

feb/dpa